Krait book 14c Doings at Durmstrang
by slytherinsal
Summary: Attila Nagy's son starts Durmstrang, where the Musical Marauders take this most musical little boy under their wing and they discover the concept of combat gardening together. Meanwhile Zoltan Nagy has problems with ordinary ethnic racism, a possessive mother, and the usual crop of bullies. Durmstrang has to cope with some old attitudes without Jade; but now it has Marauders...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Sigismund Tóth smiled kindly at the petrified looking small boy he was escorting to the portkey that would take them to outside the lodge where the pupils of Durmstrang collected.

"Three – two – one – grab" he said; and they were whirled with that uncomfortable feeling into the dark silent forest some hundred yards from the big impressive lodge.

Sigismund had suggested to his natural father, Attila Nagy, that he should set up the portkey to take them far enough away to give him a chance to have a word with his half brother, who he was meeting for the first time.

He grinned at Zoltan Nagy and dropped the lump of wood that was now no more than that; a lump of wood.

"Is – is that the school?" asked Zoltan.

"No, this is actually too small; we meet here to make friends and grab a type to fag for and so on" said Sigismund. "THIS year the prefects are going to vote for a head girl or boy and that'll take place here. You need to pick a good type to fag for, and I say, I have heaps of advice for you; if you're prepared to listen."

"I'll always listen; you haven't tried to bully me and I guess I was afraid of that."

"There are those that do try to; and I promised Professor Nagy that me and my friends would look out for you and beat on any bullies."

"Why? I mean, why would you do that, and – and do you mean he actually cares?"

"Why we do is a long story that there's not time for now; and yes of COURSE your father cares you- you poor prune!" Sigismund had picked up a lot of Jade's slang in the year she had taught at Durmstrang.

"I don't think I'm a poor prune; he never seems to care much and he shouts at me and mama says he's violent."

Sigismund snorted.

"If she believed that, she'd send you to somewhere like Prince Peak NOT put you under his care" he said dismissively "He's sort of loud; I generally shout back, though not in class of course, I have to hold a reasoned argument or it would be rude to a professor. He talks a lot about you and how he misses you but he doesn't get on with your mother so I guess it starts quarrels. But just listen to the advice; I'll talk about family stuff later! You do NOT want to mention him being your father to any old oik you know, because some of them will take it the wrong way; some might bully you just because it's a way to get at a teacher; and others might be smarmy at you because they're stupid enough to think it might get them better marks. It wouldn't" he added. "Any more than threatening you would, except if they did you can bet he'd be doing more than shouting at them. I got six strokes from him last year – not that I didn't deserve it – and he was being moderately lenient but I shouldn't want him irritated with me. He'll respect you better too for being proper and not calling him 'father' like I don't call him 'Uncle Attila' for knowing my family well" Sigismund went on. "And about being a fag, you want someone half decent so I thought you might like to fag for Takeo Namudzu. He used to be a bit uncertain of temper because he had problems at home but he's always been decent to my bunch, we're the third Durmstrang Marauders; and he's in with all the right crowd. And you'll want to join the English Customs Club."

"Why? I'm not likely to visit England" said Zoltan.

"Oh it's only a code name that was used to hide it from Odessa" said Sigismund "We run to get stamina – to hold spells longer, you know – and learn cool counter curses and some of the older marauders know some cool jinxes too that THEY got from English Marauders and teach us; like the fluorescent fart jinx that makes your farts glow in horrid colours, and our bunch are working on it to make it luminous so you get glow-in-the-dark farts; WIZARD!"

"That sounds er, interesting" said Zoltan.

"And we learn more chanting too; you so will want to learn chanting if you're musical, one of my friends is musical, Corneliu, and he's taught us a lot and we're having a special music teacher this year, who's also teaching chanting as a full time class and those of us who want to do music study on Saturdays. And none of us plays cello so that's just AWESOME" he added, indicating Zoltan's big case. "You and us six are the only ones who'll be studying unless there's anyone else musical in your class; we'll learn so much, and us who are interested but not so good can back up you and Corni. You can do AMAZING magic with music, as well as it being cool to have musical people around" he added, and paused for breath.

"So I won't get called sissy? Mama said that father would tell people I was a sissy."

"Well I think you mama doesn't understand him very well" said Sigismund, wishing he could slap his half brother's mother. "He's tremendously proud of you being musical, and he wishes he could be proud in public rather than protecting you by pretending to be no relative. It's a common enough name to get away with it; but he WILL be hard on you in class because he won't want anyone guessing if he seems to be too soft."

"Will – will he whip me?" asked Zoltan in a small voice.

"Not if you don't do anything to deserve it" said Sigismund. "WE got a whacking for setting a whole bunch of doors to explode a little bit and it made some of the staff nervous enough that we got offered the choice of copying out the entire of the 1812 Overture or six good whacks. Well we took the whacks; soonest over! If you do mischief, you got to pay for it; if you stay clear of trouble you won't get any impot. Here, come on inside and we'll see if Herr Namudzu is here yet."

oOoOo

Takeo was there; and one of his favourite juniors brought him a small boy with a cello.

"You need a fag, Herr Namudzu" said Sigismund "And so here is Zoltan Nagy, who is musical and can play for you when he does his practising; he's also clever."

Takeo bowed, Japanese fashion, pulled a face and did so again European fashion.

"I enjoy listening to music" he said. "And I shall enjoy calming music; it's been an interesting holiday."

"Did you tell the old goat where he could stick his rotten bullying school?" asked Sigismund, interested.

"Eavesdropping brat" said Takeo. "Your description is a trifle more picturesque than I should have used; but essentially, yes."

Sigismund beamed and held out a hand.

"We were all rooting for you when you were feeling agitated" he said.

"It helped; my thanks" said Takeo, dryly, shaking. "You should be careful" and he flicked a glance so fast at Zoltan that the younger boy did not see it. Sigismund answered his blood brother with an almost imperceptible nod.

Takeo knew about Zoltan; he would take care of him.

oOoOo

Sigismund grabbed Zoltan to meet his own set when they arrived; Corneliu and Beryx had a small Romanian boy in tow whom they patted kindly on the arm and left with Nikolai Nagy, the senior Romanian. Another Hungarian boy was brought in by Attila Nagy himself, who contented himself with a nod at each of his sons before apparating away.

"He's the cousin of the yucky sixth former I refused to fag for last year" said Sigismund "And as I'd heard of him through the wizarding community I didn't think you'd want to travel with him any more than I did; it's what teachers are for, to palm off unpleasant duties on. Anyway, I talked fast to get to have a private time with you without a sullen spoilt brat hung on us."

"I still don't know why" said Zoltan.

"Well, first off, you should know that our bunch – me, the four boys and Bronislava – are the junior branch of a not-very-secret society called the Marauders" said Sigismund "And it was started in England by the father of Harry Potter – THE Harry Potter – because one of his friends was a werewolf and he and his other friends wanted to protect him AND see he got to have fun. And it's got more serious with people like Voldemort and Odessa and Marauders pledge to be friends forever and fight dark wizards and have a jolly good time too doing japes to hone our skills; only I guess if you don't like being whacked you'd have to opt for copying."

"Thanks, I think I'd actually rather be whacked than write out the entire 1812 overture" said Zoltan "Only violence is scary because I don't know what to do."

"Oh we'll teach you; and you'll learn a load of defences in the ECC too" said Sigismund. "It's not being whacked that's scary it's wondering what bullies there are if any and if they've got a warped imagination. A sore bum soon cools down; Professor Nagy isn't that unkind a whacker, and it didn't even hardly leave any bruises; not like stories I've heard of whippings from seniors – before the Odessa got slung out – which made you bleed. It's kind of there to chasten. Anyway" he went on "We sort of wondered what you might think of marauding."

"I – do you think I'd be brave enough?" asked Zoltan wistfully.

"I think everyone has as much courage inside them as they are prepared to look for" said Sigismund "If you WANT to maraud with us, you know, you'll find the courage; and that doesn't mean not being scared. Doing stuff even though you're scared is what real courage is; and you know, you're a whole year younger than us and if you want to butt out of stuff we shan't hold it against you or think worse of you. Courage IS a renewable commodity, Frau Von Luytens says, but sometimes it needs a break from doing stuff to renew it. She's most awfully wise; I told her you'd had a mum who babied you a bit and it might have kind of made you doubt your manliness and she said that once at school and more independent you'd soon find your feet. I went to her as a special grown up you see because my real mother is the Head; though I am adopted by mum and dad too. No secrets between Marauders."

"Is – is that hard?"

Sigismund shrugged.

"She leaps on me harder than most if I get caught marauding; but it's handy for her having marauders in the school. Marauders sort out bullies and tell things off the record if there's DANGEROUS trouble; like someone trying to be another little Prince Gerhardt" he explained. "And – and no secrets between Marauders; and you wondered why I singled you out; well, you see, you know your parents don't get on because they had an arranged marriage?"

"They hate each other I think" said Zoltan "And I used to be ready to hate father but the last few hols he's been home more and taken me places and – and I can't believe what mama believes that he only wants to make it worse for me by showing his true colours and whipping me lots at school."

"I am afraid your mama has let her prejudices take her into the realms of fantasy" said Sigismund while the others hooted in derision. "Has he EVER whipped you?"

"No; anyway, mama would not let him" said Zoltan.

"My father beats my mother and beats us regularly" said Bronislava "My brother and me, anyway; our eldest sister is his princess. But my mother wouldn't dare try to stop him. I guess THAT tells you how violent YOUR father really is, 'cos he's a big strong man and you're quite skinny so I guess your mama isn't large."

That made Zoltan think.

"I guess you have a point" he said.

"She does" said Sigismund "And I'm trying to TELL you something you prune; so do listen! Because your dad knew my mum – well still knows my mum but they're only friends now – and so- so I'm your brother and brothers are supposed to look out for kid siblings you know!"

Zoltan stared.

"In good families siblings look out for each other" said Bronislava "My brother is now a freelance cursebreaker and he has a goblin as his assistant, who's married with heaps of children, and they ALL look out for each other; there isn't any favourites; wouldn't that be nice? And Grelleg and the twins are in Frau Von Luytens' school now, and another girl in the street they live, she's human, and she gets on really well with Saxburra. Saxburra and Torschik are your age and so is this Emilia; and Grelleg's a year older than me and Jaromir brought him on as much as he could in the hols with my books. And they're such nice people and by the way, Marauders also stand against racism and there are goblin and even elf marauders; are you in?"

"If elves can have the courage to be marauders I jolly well should think I can" said Zoltan.

"Good; let's blood him in quick before the big ones can stop it" said Sigismund.

"Blood? What do you mean?" Zoltan was scared.

"We join to each other with blood magic and no it ISN't dark magic; it's neutral. Intent is what makes things dark or not" said Sigismund "And then we'll ALWAYS know where you are so if anyone's bullying you we can turn up and bully them back only worse, see? And you can draw on us too; it's amazing, Zoltan, there's so many Marauders and supporters in all the schools, some of them teachers too; and we all fight evil and none of us is ever alone ever again. And your blood will sing and the music of the musical ones will burst through your soul" he added.

Zoltan swallowed.

"I – I trust my brother" he said stoutly.

They slit palms and Sigismund smiled reassuringly as Zoltan swallowed hard and followed suit.

And then Takeo came in with his palm bloody.

"Thought you ought to have an older one to take the blame for protecting my fag" he murmured "And there's sweeties in my pockets."

"You ARE the best, Takeo!" said Sigismund.

Zoltan was looking amazed and awed.

"So MANY!" he said softly, and raised his voice in a wordless song of joy.

Corneliu fished out a notebook printed with staves and jotted it down; and Sigismund gave his friend a smile of gratitude. Zoltan might work it up later; so long as it was remembered in notation.

And then they ate chocolate gratefully.

Meanwhile the prefects had arrived early to vote for a head boy or girl; with new prefects in the Asimov twins, Gisela Schutzmann and Sigismundis de Brujin joining Zhanargul, Stiv, Jochen and Hilde in the upper sixth. This too accounted for the greater part of the quidditch team; but as Agata Bacsó said acidly to sundry of her staff, it could merely be that those who played using team work to this get themselves on the team were also those who were prefects for the same reason and happened to have been trained by Jade Snape Von Strang und Luytens. She had also promoted Takeo as prefect for his much improved attitude; and Zoltan was busy noticing that of those with Prefect badges, he could feel the blood of five of them out of the nine.

Takeo hurried off to leave the little ones to it as soon as the whole complement of prefects arrived – the twins bringing in a junior from Greece and Zlatko's murmured comment about too many jokes and so little time; and the ballots were cast into a box that magically engulfed them and took them directly to Agata Bacsó's office.

Zhanargul was glad to be back at school though it was her final year; she was determined to do a year of research too at Prince Peak if her father permitted it next year however! She had spent much of the holidays with Lazlo Ijas and wanted to be immersed in work so she did not miss him too much; but as Lazlo was doing sundry investigations on Jade's behalf, and would not be teaching, she might see more of him if she DID do another year in education as he would likely be regularly visiting Prince Peak to consult with Professor Snape. Her lady in waiting, Saula, would be glad to return to a young man she had met in their own country; a young man of prominent family who would cherish a bride with so extensive an education as Saula and would doubtless encourage her to teach and prepare other Kazakhstani children for a European school. And Saula's brother was this year starting Prince Peak, and it would be worth using as part of her argument that duty to underlings meant she should see how he was settling in. They had travelled with the cold-eyed Uzbeki girl Moxsuda and her brother who was to be in this year's first; and Zhanargul liked his looks far more than she had liked those of his sister. She duly passed him on to Desolina Uccello, a gentle girl, with a suggestion that he fag for her.

oOoOo

Wencelada was also busy arranging fagging duties for her twin sisters Amatista and Esmeralda; whom she firmly deposited on the Eulenspiegel twins with the firm comment that twins needed twins to fag for them.

Fortunately this appealed to Xanthe and Xanthippe more then the idea of having fags at all did; and they welcomed the little girls, Xanthe taking under her wing straightforward no nonsense Amatista while Xanthippe favoured questioning Esmeralda.

The third Marauders nodded with more courtesy than enthusiasm as Ernst Reinkessel, in the dormitory of the boys, turned up; and Pyotr Gorshok. From a number of Russians entering the previous year, there were none this year; that was the way it went. Alois Dunkelschwann was another matter, with another small boy in tow from Austria; a boy with the most horrendous burn scar over his face and disappearing inside his robe; and fingers burned into a claw on his left hand. Alois looked around and dragged the new junior over to the marauders.

"This is Leopold Pessl; you lot CAN chant to clear his scars and make his hand work, can't you?" said Alois hopefully. "You lot having picked it up better than me?"

"Well I don't know that WE can but if we enlist the Eulenspiegels we can certainly assist THEM to do so" said Beremud. "You chose not to go to Prince Peak, school of the greatest chanter in the world?"

"IS it?" said Leopold "I did not know; I did not even know that chanting might do anything until Alois suggested it. I have almost ceased to notice the scarring, though it can be painful at times."

"How did it happen?" asked Beryx.

Lindhard kicked him.

"That SO is a nosy question!" he said.

"Questions generally are; it's the point of asking them" said Beryx. "I guess if Leopold minds answering he'll tell us to go fish up a tree."

"Oh I don't mind" said Leopold "My great aunt set fire to our house when I was a baby because she was jealous; and the neighbour's elf apparated mum and dad out first because she had forgotten they had me, and by the time she got me, the wall next to my cot had got rather hot. I'm glad to say I don't really remember it; but the old moo is in Nurmengard and serve her right."

"Rather" said Beryx. "She'll be good company for Zhanargul's wicked uncle who kept trying to kill her last year and stuff. Who are you fagging for?"

"I wasn't sure" said Leopold.

"Gisela?" suggested Bronislava.

"Good one; give that girl a banana" said Sigismund. "She can help chant too."

Gisela and the Eulenspiegel twins came over in response to blood pulses; took one look at Leopold, nodded and began an impromptu chant right away. The third marauders started to sing a wordless counterpoint; and a startled Zoltan picked it up quickly and joined in.

Leopold gasped as the skin suddenly itched, then eased – and his fingers stretched out and started to move!

Zhanargul's contralto added more skilled words to the wordless efforts of the second years as she joined the group and Takeo took up the chant, as did Wencelada who strolled over. Soon the young Austrian boy had clear skin and a full range of movement in hand and arm; and he was crying with delight.

"Have we almost a quorum of the next lot of Marauders?" asked Xanthe "There are four first years here, Wencelada's sisters, Leopold and young….. Zoltan, wasn't it?"

"Too late; we stole Zoltan to maraud with us" said Sigismund.

"I thought I felt illicit ceremonies" said Xanthippe. "Had you thought he might like to put together his own Marauder group?"

"No" said Sigismund "But I guess if he does, there'll be time enough for that when he knows the rest of his class and can make sensible decisions; which picking by who fags for whom as convenient ain't. Sensible I mean."

"Point, I guess" said Xanthippe.

"Please, our sister has explained marauding, and like her we think we will not maraud" said Esmeralda "Though we will back any who do."

Marauding was explained to Leopold.

"I too would support, if so helping people is what you marauders do; but I think I prefer to be a coward and leave such things as fighting dark wizards to others" he said "It is what they pay Vehmgerichten for; to arrest people like my great aunt."

Sigismund was neither surprised; nor displeased. Not that he wanted to stop his half brother having his own group, but to his mind, none of the new first years was particularly prepossessing in the way of marauding; those that did not look selfish or stuck up looked decidedly ordinary.

And Zoltan whispered,

"Am I supposed to be looking for interesting looking people? Because I don't think any of them are!"

"Scarily, no they aren't" said Sigismund. "Ask the elves to arrange you to dorm with this Leopold, and the boy with Desolina – that one over there, he's some eastern steppe type – and the Romanian boy because Beryx and Corneliu say he's mostly harmless; and having mostly harmless types in your dorm is jolly good. Prigs are the worst! And I say, there's a kid come in with a French Horn and that's NOT easy so he must be musical; HE might be worth bagging for your dorm, and maybe as a friend, if he's not stuck up about his music and doesn't boast a lot."

The boy in question noticed that he was the object of attention and came over.

"'Smatter, never seen a French Horn before?" he demanded, a little defensively.

"You been playing long?" asked Corneliu "We have a bit of a music group and we have no brass."

The boy brightened.

"Oh good!" he said "They said there was to be a music teacher this year so I brought the horn; I've been playing four years now, transferred from bugle. What do you play?"

"I'm fiddle, Zoltan, who's in your year, is cello; we're the serious ones. Sigismund is second fiddle, Beryx is recorder, Lindhard is oboe and Beremud is percussion" said Corneliu. "Lindhard was thinking of taking up saxophone which makes more sense if we have a horn to go with it. We learn how to use our music for magic too as well as for pleasure."

"What, can music do magic?" asked the boy. "My name's Felicks Knapp by the way."

"You bet your ass music can do magic!" said Sigismund; and then proceeded to introduce them. "You and Zoltan will want to bags a dorm together as well as the harmless ones so you can talk music half the night; it's really best if you can get dorm mates who share interests."

"Or failing that have moderately interesting interests you can talk about" said Bronislava. "We do talk chanting in our dorm at least; and I keep them amused with satirical poems. A rapport of some sort is necessary or you so can rub each other up the wrong way."

"We had a prig last year but he pissed off Frau Von Luytens by interrupting her class to sneak us up" said Beremud "He's mostly harmless now."

"And the other two who aren't us are mostly harmless" said Beryx "And a pity we can't get rid of them and have Bronislava instead only girls are too bracing and hearty in the mornings for it to be safe for boys to share rooms with them."

He retrieved his ears from the sides of the French Horn and restored them to the sides of his head as Bronislava took exception to this and forgot that switching spells flummoxed most third years, having learned that useful if felonious application of the spell from her brother.

"That's rather advanced transfiguration" said Zoltan, impressed.

"Huh, nothing's too advanced if you really want to do it" said Bronislava "So long as you don't skimp on the basics. Library work; and more library work. It's the basis of everything especially a really good jape and by the by who's Felicks going to fag for?"

"Desolina" said Sigismund "She could do with a second fag to help her jinx the more idiotic boys into a ball. She's beautiful" he explained to Felicks "And the older boys go dippy over her. She needs bodyguards and you're one of them."

They proceeded to dump Felicks on Desolina and left him to make friends with Melior Gdylan, the Uzbeki boy.

"He wasn't QUITE right, was he?" said Zoltan "Can you always feel them? Potential Marauders?"

"We hadn't looked before" said Sigismund. "WE were put together by Frau Von Luytens – she was a marauder in an English school and was blooded awfully young to fight beside Harry Potter – and we just went right together like that. Then we sort of collected Bronislava later. But yes, I guess there IS a sort of feel. And it can change; Bron was a bit, well, suffering from her family at first but when she came out of herself she was definitely a Marauder."

"You make me sound like a snail or something" complained Bronislava "WHAT are we going to do as a first term jape?"

"I dunno about a jape, but how about a concert?" suggested Corneliu "We play well together now and if we ask Professor Potishev he might help coach us a little. Nothing high brow; just some fun pieces."

"I like that" said Sigismund "What about a jape too though?"

"The sneezing curse on all the suits of armour?" suggested Beremud.

"That's a distinct possibility" said Lindhard "Or we could fill all the senior bathroom baths with snakes we summon."

"Any of them snake phobic? 'cos if so that's bullying" said Sigismund.

"We can find that out" said Lindhard. "Maybe we should just fill the baths with green jelly instead with pond weed on top and papier-mâché grindylows."

"I like THAT" said Beryx "With snakes you can't guarantee one of the big ones won't hurt them."

"We can save the sneezing armour for when there's an outbreak of colds or fairy flu" said Bronislava "And get people thinking they've caught it too."

"MUCH funnier" approved Beremud. "This three day meeting here is great for getting the year's mischief planned now we're settled in and old in the ways of wickedness."

oOoOo

Zoltan was happy; as he had never thought to be. He had a brother! He had hundreds of blood siblings! And he was to be encouraged in his music and to play jokes and he had learned so much just from the planning; like how to cast the sneezing curse, and what grindylows were and how to do switching spells – which were actually dead easy – and how to do the levitating charm.

This had come up in conversation when Beremud said,

"It isn't a jape, but I have a jolly good game; taking turns to try to crown Gerhardt."

"On foot or on broom?" asked Beryx.

"We could try both" said Beremud.

"Who's Gerhardt?" asked Zoltan.

They all grinned.

"He used to be a snowman; Frau Von Luytens had all of us building snowmen in Dark Arts and animated them so we could practise jinxes against them" Sigismund explained "And for the top class, she turned them into stone; and one of them wasn't entirely destroyed, his head and torso and one arm remain and he sort of flails angrily at anyone who comes near and gnashes his stone teeth; and it seemed like a good way to hone reactions."

"I don't think it could be done not on brooms" said Lindhardt.

"Unless one used _wingardium leviosa_ and stayed out of range" said Bronislava.

"That's CHEATING!" said Beremud.

"Not if that was the rule of that game; to levitate it over from where he could see it coming" said Sigismund "That'd test our control too."

This was the point at which they taught Zoltan the levitating charm; and went on to pass the time by teaching him sundry jinxes and perfecting the noctilucent noxiousness curse to make farts glow in the dark.

oOoOo

Attila Nagy returned to the lodge briefly because in its chaotic atmosphere it was easier to briefly extract his younger son to ask him how it was going.

"I promise not to be a heavy handed parent but I do worry about you – as all parents do" he said.

"Do you really, father? I'm sort of glad" said Zoltan. "I'm going to be properly formal in class but it will be nice to know that you're only going to be snippier with me because you don't want me picked on."

"And too to stop certain fools thinking that they can get better marks by creeping round you; or threatening you if you don't tell me they're good to you" said Attila. "We will take generations to shed the taint of Odessa I'm afraid; Frau Professor McGonagall in Hogwarts says that some families still have the taint of Voldemort's influence in England more than ten years after he was killed. I met her at the symposium; I told you about it."

"Mama said it was a lie and you were with a mistress" said Zoltan "Though as she doesn't want to sleep with you I can't see that it would matter much. Do you fancy this English professor?"

Attila laughed.

"Not hardly! She's not much younger than Albus Dumbledore himself! And the transfigurations teacher at Prince Peak – who is beautiful – would turn me into something I couldn't get out of; she's Snape's wife and the daughter of Voldemort. The teacher at the new school is male; and I'm not quite sure what gender the French one is. And I wasn't about to ask in case I got told" he added. "I don't have a mistress at the moment; though I've had lovers."

"Like the head; Sigismund's mother" said Zoltan.

"Ah, he has told you? I hoped he might. He wanted to tell you himself rather than have me do it; and you boys have to live together in school so I agreed."

"I bet he's better at coping when you get cross than I am" said Zoltan "Angry voices are like discords and they make the music in my head go away; and that's what frightens me."

Attila stared.

"I see" he said. "Well I partly see. For me it would be losing the beautiful mathematical certainties of transfiguration; so yes I think I do see. That would frighten me. Would it help to let it be martial music?"

"I think" said Zoltan "Now I've been made a marauder I won't find it as hard."

"What, they blooded you in already?" Attila was slightly shocked. "Well, I suppose I shan't have to worry so much about you then" he added "You'll never be alone."

"That's what my wonderful brother said, father" said Zoltan.

"Come and embrace me; I do love you. I just find it hard to express; especially when I'm afraid that the private war your mama and I have will turn that into something twisted" said Attila.

Zoltan hugged him.

"Sigismund says she lets disliking you let her see fantasies that she believes but are just her worst fears" he said.

"Well maybe that's what it is" said Attila, thinking how wise his older son could be! "I guess I could have been a better father to both of you."

Zoltan giggled.

"Attila has done better of late but still needs to improve; could do better" he said "Like a school report."

Attila roared with laughter.

"Well you DO have a sense of humour in there!" he said. "I WILL try to do better; just please don't return me a report 'Attila is trying' which I use for some of my more atrocious pupils!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Zoltan enjoyed the trip in the flying carriages to the grim castle of Durmstrang; and reflected that without the sure and certain love of his brother and the knowledge that his father DID care about him, it would actually be rather scary.

"Bit of a pile, isn't it?" said Sigismund "It's brighter on the inside, Frau Von Luytens got it tricked out with hangings and paintings and talked the head into having a mural painter in to do a few frescos. I'm looking forward to seeing them; they've been done over the holidays" he looked round quickly to see nobody was listening and added "Mother Agata says they are very good, mostly woodland scenes with unicorns and deer and if you know where to look there's a place you can peer through the trees and see a troll spanking Heinrich Nachtigall because the artist knew him; he was a big bully and nothing like his cousin, Fraulein Professor Nachtigall who teaches Arithmancy. You'll like her; she's very good. Our previous Arithmancy teacher was useless, though I'm glad to say she left before I had any lessons with her."

"I'm looking forward to all of it" declared Zoltan; and he was!

oOoOo

The Headmistress welcomed back all her pupils.

"The result of the vote for a head of school returned Zhanargul Nurtazin as head girl" she announced. "Zhanargul has shown herself to be a leader over the last couple of years through a period of adversity and I can truly say I could not have made a better choice myself; showing me to be quite right to believe my prefects ready to take the responsibility to elect a leader from amongst themselves. The choice was virtually unanimous; well done for placing the good of the school first. Stiv Molotov is to be captain of the quidditch team which I understand is virtually unchanged save that, all things being equal and so long as trials go well, Harald Trollkettil is named to fill Jaromir Frolik's shoes as Keeper. This becomes more important when I tell you that we have received a challenge from Hogwarts School in England and an invitation from them to meet their whole school team later in this term" and she paused to allow for cheers and whoops before going on. "As you know, Frau Professor Von Luytens was with us only for a year as a stopgap; she has opened her own school, together with her husband and sundry other staff, many of them ex pupils of Durmstrang or Hogwarts, teaching those ineligible for Durmstrang for their blood status, and such goblins as will become the new educated class of goblins. We honour Frau Von Luytens for her dedication and welcome in her place Herr Professor Gierek whom the older among you may remember. Herr Gierek has been spending a year working with an English Auror, which is what they call Vehmgerichten" and she smiled at Clovis. He rose.

"I have indeed had the enviable honour to work alongside not only Draco Malfoy but his friend Harry Potter; in understanding the many headed and mutable nature of the dark arts I could really have no better practical mentors" he said. "I shall continue in the tradition that Professor Von Luytens has set in teaching counters to the dark arts with equal emphasis to the dark arts themselves; and in hoping to show you that those who rely solely on the dark arts are but poor creatures. With exposure to English techniques I hope to make you as strong in this subject as the English themselves are."

He sat down.

Fans of Jade cheered wildly.

Agata Bacsó stood once more.

"Thank you Professor Gierek; it will be good to know that Durmstrang WILL defend with the same implacable strength we have seen from both Hogwarts and Prince Peak" she said. "We have two other new members of staff; one because we have lost Professor Rebet who, through his recent marriage, finds it more convenient to transfer to Professor Luytens' new school; you may be sure I spoke to her severely about poaching!" she said, smiling to show she joked "But she made suggestion of an excellent alternative Potions Professor, indeed, Fraulein Professor Von Freyer was in Professor Luytens' mind for her own school. Again, some of you older ones may recall Professor Von Freyer."

Cacilia rose.

"I heard that nasty and rude comment about Professor Rebet, Kunegunde Sternkessel" she said "And you may do me thirty lines of 'many times when I have spoken I have regretted doing so but when I have remained silent I have never regretted it' in the hopes that it may teach you continence of speech. Professor Rebet has married a potioneer who works for Frau Baronin Nefrita Von Strang und Luytens as a medical potioneer in poverty stricken areas; not that it is the business of the school at all. She was NOT eligible for Durmstrang nor is her daughter; who is in any case capable of passing the very stiff exam to get into Prince Peak. Which YOU are not; so any suggestions about trolls are more likely to apply to YOUR grading my fine lady because I HAVE looked over all the end of year exams for all the students so I know exactly what to expect from each of you. I warn you all now, that although I am not so hasty of temper as Professor Rebet can be, I shall be quite as exacting in what I expect from you; do not expect a soft ride merely because I am younger and less experienced. Nor will I tolerate rudeness any more than Professor Rebet and certainly not ABOUT Professor Rebet who is a potioneer I revere for his skill. The pupils of Schloss Adler are fortunate to have acquired his services; and I shall attempt to live up to his standards, would you care to repeat that Fraulein Sternkessel?"

"I – I didn't say any Fraulein Professor!" squeaked Kunegunde Sternkessel..

"Funny, I could have sworn someone at the table of the third said 'you could scarcely drop lower' which is a massive piece of cheek. Well then, the third collectively shall produce me one hundred lines of 'manners maketh man' and I shall rely on the fair minds of the third to see that the appropriate culprit manages to produce them since I shall not ask for sneaking. Do not assume that with Professor Von Luytens and her lynx like ears out of the way that you will get away with the sort of rudeness that was common before the overthrow of Odessa: Frau Professor Bacsó will not permit it and Professors Gierek and Potishev and I were both, let me remind you, close friends of Nefrita Von Luytens and learned much from her. I hope that we will too be able to bring all that we learned from her to your collective edification and guide you through the path of learning. Thank you for your indulgence, Madam Bacsó, my apologies that a simple address had to be interrupted by disciplinary matters."

"Thank you for handling the discipline for me, Professor Von Freyer" said Agata "And may I remind the school that I have also learned much from the creative discipline of the English schools; as have all the staff, as indeed we have exchanged ideas and learned much about other ways to approach teaching in an all school symposium over the holidays in England, where teachers of many European nations got together to exchange ideas. I am considering expanding the curriculum in the future; and some of the youngest in the school may well benefit from that. Which leads me to the introduction of our third new member of staff, introducing as a timetabled subject for the first time, chanting; Professor Potishev will also teach the musically talented or keen on Saturdays."

Volodya rose.

"I reserve the right to exclude from chanting any pupil who has no sense of rhythm" he said "On grounds that it disrupts the whole class and may prevent them learning potentially life saving chants. I will tell you now that those of you who observe the English system of early rising to run will find my class less physically arduous. As to the musically talented or keen I surely hope the keen have some ability because I refuse to listen to horrible noises and will exclude any who make them. Chanting is not a soft option; you will need physical fitness and a great deal of Arithmancy to be any good at it. Mucking about in my class gets you turned into a caterpillar. Don't say I didn't warn you."

He sat down again.

"Blunt and to the point" murmured Cacilia.

"What more does it need?" said Volodya "Shut up do, I have a tune in my head that wants to come out."

oOoOo

Zoltan had firmly – with some help from Felicks – put together a dormitory. He had picked Melior Gdylan from Uzbekistan, Ionut Anghel from Romania, the Austrian boy Leopold Pessl, a Polish boy called Waldemar Junda, the Greek boy, whose name was Periklis Theodrakis and a merry eyed German boy called Herman Langstab who preferred to be with jolly looking youths than stick – as so many Germans did – to all German dormitories. Of non Germans this then left Zsombor Czerny and a boy all the way from Pakistan. Zoltan did NOT want to have anything to do with Czerny; and the Pakistani boy seemed to use aggression as a tactic to overcome being in a minority. Zoltan did NOT like aggression; and though he hesitated in case being in an ethnically mixed dormitory might help him, decided that the good peace of his other dormitory mates was more important to him and chose Herman instead. Herman was glad to be asked and disappointed that the other jolly boys Zoltan had been talking to were second years.

"So how come you hang about with second years?" he asked.

"Because Sigismund is related to me; we are closer than brothers" said Zoltan. Which was true. "And his friends are my friends; and they are all, besides, musical. It is another bond."

This satisfied even the nosy Herman who liked to know things; and he and Felicks proved their worth as intelligencers between them by getting Periklis to admit to an ear disorder that he feared made him miss out on Quidditch sometimes, which he loved. Zoltan promptly marched the Greek boy off to find Takeo, who put together a chanting group to sort out the boy's ears; and that meant that Volodya was going to have one dormitory full of convinced chanters who would make no trouble! Especially when Leopold shared too with the others about his scar and how he now had fingers that worked and would not need to rub his body with cream twice a day as he had always had to do!

"I am going to write to my parents and tell them!" he said happily "Because it is so wonderful; and a skill that should be taught to all healers! I AM glad I came to this school."

"It started in the English schools" said Zoltan "If you'd stayed closer to home at Prince Peak you would have had it done there too you know."

"My parents did not put me in for Prince Peak; I'm not a squib but I know I'm not much more" said Leopold sadly "It may have been the shock or it may just be that I'm not very good; but I do try hard."

"I think" said Zoltan "They take on pupils with special needs too; so if you are unhappy here, and don't get on I guess it won't do any harm for your parents to ask about it. I thought I'd like to go there but now I have made friends here, I guess I'm glad I didn't. And we will of course do all we can to help you; dormitory mates are supposed to stick together and help each other out" he added firmly.

"I'm sure you'll do just fine" said Waldemar Junda with a fatuous smile of mindless optimism. "I am glad to be with a group of convivial boys, because I was very scared coming here."

"What we need to do" said Zoltan "Is to sick Herman and Felicks onto anyone they can get anything on so if anyone tries to throw their weight around we can threaten them a little bit with blackmail."

"It isn't very nice" said Melior.

"No, but nor is a junior whose life is made a misery by a bullying senior" said Zoltan "THAT's what I meant."

"You mean find out all about big people? THAT's a challenge" said Felicks.

"One I'm sure you and Herman will rise to" said Zoltan. Being a Marauder really gave him confidence to organise all this! His Dorm mates might not be marauder material but as a marauder it was his bounden duty to weld them together as a sort of gang to at least face out any bullies!

oOoOo

The choice of dorm mates – and indeed the dormitory – made some unpleasantness.

Sigismund, who was popular with the castle elves, had managed to arrange that his brother and cronies have the best first year dormitory, which had wide windows overlooking the lake and the warmth from the main kitchen chimney through it; and this was resented by those who thought they deserved it more.

This came in the form of two resentments; the first being those ethnic Germans who were outraged when they discovered that a bunch of foreigners had the best room, a problem that had not emerged so forcefully over the Five since there had been a lower number of German boys in their year, certainly not enough prepared to make an issue of their ethnicity with a large number of Slavic youths to dispute it.

A boy called Friedrich Steiner decided to do something about it and marched off to see the professor he thought likely to do the most good for him. And that was Cacilia Von Freyer.

"Fraulein Professor, rather than trouble the head, I though I should come to you as a pure bred German witch of impeccable lineage" he said.

Cacilia frowned.

"Somehow I fail to see what my lineage or blood status might possibly have to do with you" she said coolly.

"But Frau Professor Von Freyer, I too am pure blood and though I am not of noble blood, I am of excellent family as are many of we German youths" said Steiner eagerly "And that is why I thought you, who are of the same sort of background as we would understand and sympathise that we are done out of our rights; because the best dormitory has been occupied by a bunch of foreigners, even some filthy creature from the civilisationless eastern Steppes! It is not to be born, and please, we would like you to throw them out so that good German boys might thus occupy the best dormitory!"

Cacilia stared at him in well simulated surprise. She was not surprised; thus had Heinrich Nachtigall acted.

"Why you silly little boy!" she said "Whatever does nationality have to do with the dormitory that is occupied? If those boys bagged that dormitory first, then that is the way it is; and I suspect if there IS a better dormitory, the ones housed in it were doubtless the ones who showed themselves to be TRUE gentlemen by courtesy to the castle elves; I have seen amongst some of you who think yourselves well enough born a distressing lack of the instincts of gentlemen in peremptory manners towards the servants. The elves know how to reward those who behave with due courtesy. And, may I say, I consider it also the epitome of rudeness for you to presume upon sharing a nationality with me to try to get your own way; and to expect me to behave in a heavy handed, unfair and bullying fashion on your say so. You are very much out of line Mein Kleine Herr; contumelious and above yourself. I suggest you get out of my sight before I find you an imposition to write for your impudence!"

"But I don't understand!" whined Steiner "We Germans should be keeping the foreign animals in their places!"

"Understand THIS" said Cacilia, hoisting him into the air as a four foot woodlouse "That sort of racist comment is what led to Odessa and to Germany becoming the laughing stock of Europe such that in England, anyone with vulgar manner or bad manners is called 'a little bit German' and I HATE that! And I hate it because people like you make it truth! You are a pupil at Durmstrang; as are all the others. There is no difference between the lot of you; even the one princess we have in the school. SHE accepts equality with all others! No ethnic background has any prominence; any more than the head gives way to those who happen to be Hungarian as she is. And by the way, I AM glad to hear how much you respect the head girl, I'm sure she'd be delighted to hear that her ancient culture that is in descent of the first wizarding culture outside China should be described as 'civilisationless'. Just remember that if you take your incivility to the extent of cheeking the head girl, the staff WILL back her; and if I were you I should be very careful. As a ZH candidate, too much bad behaviour towards her might be construed as interfering with her exams; an expulsion offence. Now leave the other pupils alone and stop whining that you want it fairer for you than for anyone else and just get a life."

She turned him back with a wave of the hand.

The shocked Steiner scuttled off almost as fast as if he still had the excess legs of a woodlouse.

oOoOo

The other source of complaint came from Zsombor Czerny who came up to Zoltan and pinched his arm hard.

"You are Hungarian; it pleases me to speak Hungarian in the dormitory. You will either leave your dormitory and sleep in mine or you will get rid of one of those in yours for me to move in" said Czerny.

"Who died and made YOU Grindelwald?" said Zoltan, firmly speaking German. "I'll do nothing of the sort; I don't like you and I don't want to share a dormitory with you. Get lost."

"You! You have no say; you are a nobody, you came to the school with the brat in the second whereas I was brought by Professor Nagy because my family is more prominent than whatever yours is, even if you do have the same surname as the professor! You are nothing but a sissy because you play a sissy music instrument and if you don't do what I want, I will smash it up!"

"If you did, I have no doubt that you'd find out that being a caterpillar for Herr Professor Potishev would be the least of your worries" said Zoltan, feeling sick "Because he'd want to know what happened to it; and Professors take a dim view of the work of their pupils being sabotaged."

"Huh, you overestimate your worth!" said Czerny, pinching him again.

Zoltan took a deep breath, touched his wand for reassurance and switched Czerny's hands and ears.

"Don't do that again" he said; and walked away.

Czerny was howling in horror.

Zoltan went in search of Sigismund to find out if there was any way he could safeguard his cello, explaining what had happened.

"JUST like his cousin" said Sigismund. "No appreciation of consequences; it MUST be a heritable sickness that they cannot SEE that any but themselves are in any way relevant. I know just the job but we need a bit of help from senior marauders; the Asimov twins in fact."

oOoOo

Once the Asimov twins had had the matter explained they readily took the seven junior marauders down to the music room and involved them in a chant that would backfire curses on anyone who attempted to jinx any of the instruments; and added a layer of chanting that was a physical barrier shield such that any touch other than the normal, in other words, as Zlatko said, a blow, kick, whack or poke would impact upon the barrier as though it were steel so that any foot or hand or even a hand holding a weapon should get a nasty jar.

"Nice work" said the voice of the Russian music professor from the door "I heard the door open to this room and came to see if there was skulduggery afoot; you protect the juniors' instruments you twins?"

Zoltan thrilled to feel that this Professor who would teach him music was also of the Blood!

"Yes Vol – uh sir" said Zlatko. "It's based on one we came up with last year to protect our brooms; the electricity spell powered by the force of any jinx involved directed through the wand. Blew up a girl's wand totally over our brooms. It's a tricky twist grounding it through the wand AND adding a generic curse to drop the avocado jellied furnunculous curse on the bearer too. We tied that one into the barrier against physical attack also" he added cheerfully.

"Hmmm. Any specific reason to suspect this might be needed?"

"Zoltan was threatened" said Zlatka "We can't of course say by whom."

"No, quite" said Volodya "I will watch over the instruments of all my little brothers and sister as over my own also. Excuse" he wandered around the instruments singing melodiously in Russian.

"Neat" said Zlatko.

"I didn't follow it all" said Zlatka.

"I added the levicorpus hex to the avocado jellied furnunculous" said Volodya "So any culprit will be dangling from one ankle to be collected. You children know the hex?"

"No sir!" chorused the Third Marauders. It was no surprise that the Asimov twins DID know it.

Volodya taught the younger ones; AND the counter.

"Learn to cast wordlessly so nobody can steal your best curses" said he laconically.

"Should there not be music patterns so we can whistle them?" asked Corneliu.

"Ah! Excellent; lateral thinking. It is on your curriculum" said Volodya "Now be about your business!"

oOoOo

Zoltan found that an elf was looking for him to summon him to Attila Nagy's office; and duly went. Zsombar Czerny was in there.

His ears and hands were back in their rightful places.

"Herr Nagy, did you switch Herr Czerny's hands and ears?" asked Attila.

"Yes sir; I did" said Zoltan "It seemed a fair retaliation."

"Ah, retaliation" said Attila "THAT was something you left out, Herr Czerny."

"Sir, this nobody lies! I had done nothing!" said Czerny. He spoke in Hungarian.

"Herr Czerny the official language of the school is German" said Attila "Herr Nagy, do you care to explain?"

"I have no intention of sneaking, sir, about any attacks or threats made; let it suffice that I felt Herr Czerny's hands less irritating if moved" said Zoltan.

"How the devil did you learn to do a switching spell that smooth?" asked Attila.

"Oh I watched Bronislava stick Beryx' ears onto Felicks' French Horn" said Zoltan "And she told me it was a switching spell and handy to have in one's repertoire of jinxes."

Attila beamed.

"It is a spell many a third year has trouble with; it is tested in the ZP! It was smoothly and neatly done; you should do well in transfigurations!"

"Aren't you going to PUNISH him sir?" demanded Czerny.

Attila gazed at him.

"It was for you to tell me who to punish WHY?" he asked. "You are unharmed; the spell was well executed. And I am still wondering why it was ….retaliation. Well, as you must have been fighting both of you are due punishment for that; pray bend over my desk the both of you."

"But I'm not at fault! He used dangerous spells on me!" said Czerny in Hungarian.

"German Herr Czerny; you may blub in your own language if you like when I have enacted sentence" said Attila. "It was a spell; but not dangerous. And I know your family well enough to be quite well aware that you almost certainly started it as I had already suspected. So I will punish you both; and Herr Nagy has the satisfaction of having made you run crying like a girl to be rescued from his superior spell craft. If I were you I should not try to throw your weight around; your cousin got expelled for it. Will you bend over of your own accord or must I make you?"

Czerny sulkily bent.

"I'll get you" he whispered to Zoltan.

The blow of the ruler was sharp; but singular and not as hard as Zoltan had expected. He gasped. Beside him Czerny yelped.

"You are both dismissed; such is the punishment for fighting" said Attila.

They left his office feeling warmer than was comfortable.

"If you DO try to get me, next time I shan't refuse to sneak you up" said Zoltan "Because following the code of silence is one thing, letting you try to be a bully as a matter of course is something else. Personally I think it's worth the punishment but if you attack me or my possessions again, next time I'll drop so many jinxes on you it'll REALLY be worth the whacking; because I shall really go to town and enjoy myself. Maybe I'll make your nose into a carrot and your eyes into pickled onions. Leave me alone Czerny; I'm not harmless."

"I'll fix you somehow; you OUGHT to defer to me, my family has always gone to Durmstrang; you may think you can play on being called Nagy but it's as common as Schmitt in Germany. And it's plain that the Professor does not want anyone to think he is any relation of yours or he would be less formal with you; he despises you BECAUSE you bear the same name and he wants everyone to know that you are nothing to do with him!"

Had Zoltan not had the talk with Sigismund and later with his father he might well have wondered if this was the case, in the light of his mother's careful poison; but he just laughed.

"Go play with your little wand" he said.

oOoOo

Naturally, Czerny was not about to leave it there.

He fully intended to carry out his threat of breaking Zoltan's dearest possession, his cello; but he also wanted to be in Zoltan's dormitory, as its head, and make Zoltan crawl. He had teamed up with Zahid Malik, telling the Pakistani boy that it was necessary for the foreign students to band together against the German ones. Zahid did not see a great deal of difference between Hungary and Germany; but then, Pakistan and India were not exactly friendly so he went along with Czerny in principle. Bullying other non Germans to make them join them seemed a slightly odd way to go about it but presumably it was the European way.

Trying to persuade Leopold, Melior, Periklis, Ionut and Waldemar, whilst Zoltan was talking with Sigismund, to set upon Felicks and Herman for what the five could see as no good reason was not going to happen, whatever Czerny wanted; especially when Ionut pointed out that he and his crony had not even dared suggest it to Zoltan who would be incensed that any should want to turn his friends against each other. There were high words and a selection of jinxes and Felicks and Herman joined in. And then the German contingent decided to set on all the non Germans and the two blood traitors; at which point Zoltan returned and blood pulsed Zhanargul while he started hoisting assailants in the air. He started with Czerny on general principles.

Zhanargul arrived, took in the situation and dropped full body binds on everyone not dangling from one ankle, including Zoltan.

"WHAT is the meaning of this unseemly brawl?" she said "Are you caged rats that you must fight so? Who will give me an explanation?"

"We defend our rights as Germans of good blood against ALL foreigners!" said Steiner imprudently.

"Then your rights should hold concomitant responsibilities which is what those who squeal about rights tend to forget" said Zhanargul "And this foreigner is now setting YOU twenty lines of 'my concept of German appears to be spelled r-u-d-e' by tomorrow night and they had better be done or you'll be on a Head's report. And she's not German either" she added. "Can anyone give me a more lucid account?"

"I wasn't in on the beginning, Zhanargul; sorry" said Zoltan

"Can we tell you sort of not so officially?" said Ionut "Because otherwise it's kind of sneaking."

"I'll listen unofficially and then decide if I need to tell the head girl; will that do?" said Zhanargul with a straight face. This confused some of them but Ionut grinned.

"It began because Czerny – who is a pig – and his crony there whose name I never caught, the bad tempered one from India"

"PAKISTAN!" cried Malik

"Whatever" said Ionut "The one from the Pakistan then, they started threatening our dorm except the two who are German that we ought to do over the German boys and make them leave and I don't know why because their reasons were awful obscure because it don't matter where you're from, do it?"

"It does not" said Zhanargul "Obviously more happened."

"They got nasty tongued and we started yelling and Felicks and Herman joined us and we were jinxing them to let them know we weren't having it; I know it was seven on two but Czerny got his wand out first AND was threatening stuff like sabotaging our beds and schoolwork so we sort of lost our cool. Only up til then it was a private sort of war and then all the other oiks attacked us and the two gits alike and then Zoltan came in and I guess it was him hoisting people because it stopped them fighting, mostly, and then you came. So I dunno what the general war was about either" said Ionut.

"Well!" said Zhanargul. "I'm afraid I shall have to report you to the head girl within. As Herr Nagy sent a message to me that he could hear carnage in the common room – that sounds like the title of a spoof Vehmgerichten tale – and tried to incapacitate combatants harmlessly I think I shall let HIM off; the rest of you have behaved disgracefully and made an infernal mess so you will all give up your leisure time working together to clear up WITHOUT wands; and you will moreover write me ten lines apiece in your best handwriting, 'Birds in their little nests agree' which is as much truth as that children will agree; but you are SUPPOSED to be learning civilised behaviour in school. And a good job the girls aren't in here for having been invited to learn sewing by Fraulein Von Freyer; the only thing worse then fighting boys is fighting girls. This seems to be a storm in a cauldron started by a couple of nasty little would-be bullies; you were picked on back so I shall do no more for the time being but I am watching you both."

oOoOo

Czerny was going to bide his time; but he was furious at getting yet MORE trouble; and Zoltan was GOING to suffer, of that he was determined! But let him sweat first; let him not know when misery would fall, thought the nasty little boy.

Zoltan was not sweating; his beloved Cello was safe; Czerny was utterly unable to hurt those he loved best in the world; and his Dormitory had sworn an oath to support each other against outside agency whether it was Czerny and any cronies he mustered or whether it was the German supremacists. He settled down to enjoy his lessons – which all seemed to come easily, especially transfigurations – and the ECC, and his music.

And after a week Attila had to remind his son that it WOULD be a good idea to write to his mother. Zoltan had almost forgotten home in the busy golden days of learning; and his conscience was pricked.

He duly wrote to tell his mother that he was having a marvellous time and had made a lot of marvellous friends and they had a music group and that was marvellous too. Like all small boys he was lazy about adjectives, especially in written work but the general effect was that he was marvellously happy!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The three new teachers were settling in well too.

Clovis had asked for the married quarters Jade and Wolf had occupied so Vissy had plenty of room to play and Tildi the freedom to be his wife; and Agata agreed since it was unlikely that anyone would work out the true situation.

Tildi had a brief bit of trouble from the male elf who had fathered Vissy who thought that she should sleep with him on demand; but Tildi was well versed in jinxes and made it clear that she was NOT his perks and as she was honourably free HE ought to obey HER. He promised not to even approach her ever again and she undid him from a ball and removed all the exploding pustules. Her new tall form was the envy of the other elves though some declared her above herself.

Tildi did not care; her Clovis loved her, and moreover she was blood group and safe from just about anyone who might try to harm her. And so was Vissy.

Clovis found the dark arts classes well prepared and looking forward to learning more; Jade had instilled a fascination of the dark arts in them allied with the idea that they were an academic study or for the stupidity of any who would use them as a main prop of their powers. Clovis reflected on the picture of Jade, who had the talent of making people love her, falling into the snares of the dark arts yet being oh so capable in the foundation arts, because she had a mission in mind for which any and all means were acceptable; an interpretation of 'for the common good' with a dedicated and sincere dark lady. It was frightening; she could lead her followers to spread carnage and hell and be adored by them as they regretfully did whatever she believed it took. But then, Jade was not someone to readily be fooled onto the route of the end justifies the means; she was too strong for that.

He used much of Jade's own introduction to open the first lesson with the first years; including her rider that those who sought the dark arts to be one up because they were already miserable people who were feeling one down and they should perhaps then come and see him because even if he could not cure their reasons for feeling one down he could give support and at least listen. He hesitated and added,

"I joined a rough gang and followed the Dark Arts when I was at Durmstrang because it was then a protection because I am half Polish and half German; and then it was considered that Germans and Austrians were the best and there were stupid and childish ideas that non Germans were somehow inferior. That this was extended to the idea of the English being even more inferior for teaching DEFENCE against the dark arts was rather made a mockery of with the contemptuous way the English dealt with Odessa. I learned to understand the English when a girl came from Prince Peak ostensibly to study in a school where pure blood was revered; actually to overthrow Odessa as the head could not be seen to openly consort with the English or she would have been killed. Nefrita Von Strang und Luytens is easily the most powerful person I had ever met; I presume that Harry Potter is more powerful but he hardly has to get his wand out; in his work tracking criminals most of them take one look at him and cave in. Let us say she can be the most frightening person I know; and that is because her implacable honesty and sense of justice do not stop for anything. Killing the unlamented Prince Gerhardt or killing a lich, a dessicated body dead for thousands of years and sustained by dark magic, or placing her own life in danger to rescue miners in a mine she owns that were trapped underground, if she believes it is right she does it. She could easily take and rule Germany; all Europe even. But she does not. She is sure enough of her own self worth that she does not NEED to make others bow to her. This gradually I learned; and learned to realise that wanting to force one's will on others was essentially really VERY childish; one thinks of a spoiled toddler saying to a nanny 'you've GOT to or I'll get you sacked' about some whim; bad enough in a child of two, but frankly by the age of coming to school really rather puerile. I got over the Odessa effect; it should NOT be affecting you, but if it is, I am available to talk to."

It may be noted that Zsombor Czerny did not even consider that such adjectives as childish and puerile were aimed at such as he; he had every right to push around those who were lesser beings, he was not in the least bit miserable and so sat looking bored at this irrelevant spiel.

oOoOo

Volodya scheduled evening classes for the advanced chanters who had taken lessons the previous year or years and excused them classes that they might use to do preparation in. It seemed more sensible than having them bored with repeating what they already knew; especially the exam class.

This rescheduling really only involved those of the previous year's first and second; the third now being the fourth and chanting for them scheduled as an elective and therefore only including those who had every intention of taking the OWL – there was still no ZP – as were older ones. Chanting was now taught to the first, second and third as a general taster class with the electives chosen at the end of the third year. And those of advanced level would take the exam one or two years early.

The first years just accepted it as one more class; and some took it very seriously indeed. And some neophytes were going to shirk on their breathing exercises and would fail; and in Volodya's book, serve them right.

He would have liked to have known what the boy Zoltan Nagy was making such meticulous notes over; but it was probably better not to know. The boy was a marauder; for marauders library work had only one end.

Mischief.

Volodya considered his presence here was justified in Corneliu, Zoltan and Felicks; they were truly musical. The others were adequate and worth encouraging – Volodya believed passionately in encouraging people to enjoy music, either to listen to or to make their own – and none of them dire at it such that it would be kindness to tell them that further lessons were not going to help. All would be adequate performers; and more to the point perhaps from their point of view better than adequate at using magical tunes.

oOoOo

Cacilia knew her way around the potions dungeon very well having taken her ZH in it; and regretted not having yet collected so extensive and eclectic a private library as Ihor.

It was also slightly exasperating not being as tall as Ihor, and needing to climb up and down ladders to get ingredients. She made sure to assemble everything she needed before classes; because little boys DID have a tendency to try to peer up a lady's robes – even if the angle was insufficient to see anything much – and it was undignified.

Cacilia did feel her dignity a little; and she knew it was because she was both very young and fulfilling the role of a long established institution like Herr Rebet, of whom she was still somewhat in awe and found it difficult to call him Ihor as Jade managed to do so naturally.

Her classes were mostly well behaved, however, and if any tried to push a little, Cacilia leaped on the trouble with a sharp rebuke and, if she felt it warranted, lines. Easier to lighten then tighten, as Jade had told her. Cacilia had always maintained an aloof attitude at school to rebuff any of the gangs; it was useful to be an unapproachable teacher too. It would be nice if the first had more good students to offset its many poor ones and the two genuinely dire girls; one boy was a potioneer and one girl and Zoltan might be easy 'E' students; and a few others might scrape 'E' if they worked hard. Well, the second tended on the whole to a more average class and the third had a few quite competent little potioneers. And the third and above could do with timed brewing; it had been what let Anett down in the last Triwizard; Ihor had demanded accurate over fast. Cacilia knew that Professor Snape demanded accurate AND fast; but of course, Ihor had been teaching a subject considered a less important subject – a woman's subject even – and discounted in Germany for decades; probably because Gerhardt Grindelwald had been hopeless at it or something. Seeing the exceptional abilities of such things as the werewolf cure had lifted the profile of potioneering. And having a witch of her social standing teaching would also give it cachet; which was wrong, but it was the way the world worked.

Cacilia tidied up at the end of the week and started to prepare for a lesson on Monday that was to be an impromptu test for the fifth. She climbed up to get down a jar of Salamander blood, and said 'damn!' as her skirt snagged on the ladder.

"May I take the jar for you?" Attila Nagy spoke from the doorway.

"If you don't mind, Attila; I'm snagged" said Cacilia.

"Jade is right; we DO need a goblin handy man" said Attila, relieving her of the jar. "Do you need a hand?"

"I think I'm…. Yes, actually I do, thank you" said Cacilia, retrieving her skirt from the snag again. He handed her down; and their eyes met.

Cacilia gasped; a shock ran through her whole body. And then he was kissing her; and she was kissing him back!

She pulled away.

"Attila…. That was very….sudden" she said, blushing violently.

"It was rather, wasn't it?" he said sounding surprised "I never thought of you that way before you know."

She held onto his encircling arms; her knees were weak.

"As well not when I was in your class; I'd have kneed you on general principles" she said, wishing her voice did not shake.

"Quite right too" said Attila "Never notice students – well only in degrees of intellect. You WERE one of the bright ones; you may have only got an 'E' to that daft Norwegian girl's 'O' but you had a better instinct."

"Oh Mereta Ulvang knew everything and knew nothing" said Cacilia "Knew the book backwards and never wondered about any whys. I worried too much about why things happened; and did not take enough on trust."

"I wager though you're the better transfigurationist now; you're NOT one that ever stops learning" said Attila brushing her face with his hand. She captured the hand and removed it firmly.

"Attila, I do NOT do affairs" said Cacilia "I am one of the blooded; we mate for life with either other blooded or those who blood in. That you are married I don't give a fig about; if it's where this goes I'd live with you as your mistress – but I won't accept something that's a passing fancy. We need to step back on this and decide if it IS going anywhere; and if so, how that affects your sons."

"You know about them?"

"Attila, I'm blooded to them; of COURSE I know" said Cacilia "And they probably are wondering, in common with all the blooded here what that backwash of lust was; I'm too inexperienced to block when taken so by surprise. I haven't ever been kissed before you see."

Attila stared.

"I do apologise" he said.

"Don't; it – it was rather wonderful" said Cacilia "But – but I don't want the admiration and affection I've always had for you to grow into love if all you were thinking of was a short term affair."

He stepped deliberately away from her.

"I don't think I was actually thinking at all to be quite honest" he said "It – it just happened. I want you Cacilia; but – but I'd rather get to know you. Won't – won't your family make waves if we live together?"

"My parents had a mutually beneficial marriage for their families but they had already fallen in love" said Cacilia "They would rather see me in love than in something conventional. My father would quite like me to produce a son at some point – it's my blood that counts in that – as an heir; mother had problems birthing me and the medical apportation to get me out brought the womb and all; not very competent. She's suggested daddy take a mistress, just to get an heir, and pay her well; but he won't look at another woman then her. I'd like a love like that; or like Jade has for her Wulf. Anything short is not good enough. And – and I'd need, now I know what it's like, to be with someone blooded in."

"That prospect is attractive enough just to feel close to my sons" said Attila. "We…. We should not be alone together."

"No; because I want to ask you to kiss me again and I know that would be a very bad idea" said Cacilia. "Go away, Attila; you are disturbing."

"Believe me, I'm not the only one" he said, and turned to walk out, pausing at the door to just turn and look at her. Cacilia almost ran to him; and instead firmly turned away.

She had work to do.

If only her belly would not play stupid games with her and flop about in so strange and pleasurable a way!

oOoOo

Zoltan got an owl at the breakfast table on Monday; and he read it through, frowning. He glanced towards his father; and Attila gave him half a nod.

After breakfast he beckoned Zoltan and Sigismund.

"You two…. Help me carry some books, I'll see you're not late to lessons" he said.

oOoOo

"It's a letter from Mama"said Zoltan "And – well, read it through, papa, and tell me if it doesn't sound to you as if she's almost angry with me for being happy? Aren't parents supposed to be glad if their children are happy?"

"They are" said Attila. "It does sound….. she seems a little surprised."

"Don't LIE to me papa!" said Zoltan.

"Do you think I WANT to tell you that I think that your mother forgets sometimes that you are a human being too when she sees a way of hurting me?" said Attila "She's your MOTHER! It's wrong to try to come between you!"

"Funny that she never seems to think it wrong to come between you and me" said Zoltan tightly. "So; I am a weapon more than a person; I'm glad to know that. Knowing one's status makes decision making easier."

"Do NOT throw up your relationship with your mother because she has such a bee in her bonnet about me" said Attila "She is your mother; she loves you; but she forgets sometimes that you have your own thoughts, feelings and can actually reason."

"Fine sort of love THAT is" said Zoltan bitterly. "I have been BLIND! It is so obvious that she has used me again and again; told me things to scare me so I cry off going out with you when you visit; papa, I am SORRY! What am I going to do?"

He was crying. Attila put his arms awkwardly about him and Sigismund laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I would try to let her get over this hissy fit; her love may be flawed but she does love you in her own way; she is blinded by hatred for me, and that is my fault too" said Attila. "I have not gone out of my way to be conciliatory until you were born; I tried at the beginning of the marriage; and I could not get on with her. Then….. I fear that your conception was part of an anger in me; and that is why she uses it, and you to punish me, once she saw I wanted to be conciliatory for our son's sake. It is my fault."

"No papa; you may have been at fault to make her hate you; but if she hated me because of that she should have given me up for adoption. Not used me" said Zoltan. "And if she does pretend to love me that's totally wrong; and if she did love me she wouldn't even CONSIDER hurting my feelings to hurt anyone."

Attila smiled sadly.

"I think that presupposes she realises that you have feelings and even notice" he said.

"Some grown ups don't think children can reason at all; they've forgotten being children" said Sigismund "It's how you get to eavesdrop on loads of stuff when one of them says 'hush, the child's there' and the other replies 'oh he won't understand' which makes you write surreptitious notes about what you don't understand and go looking for dictionaries and encyclopaedias later."

"I shall write to her" said Zoltan "And ask why she writes as though she is angry with me for being happy; because I am not such a baby as to need to be with my mother all the time and she knew I was growing up and I shall ask if she is angry because I get on well with my papa too and ask why should I not as he is half my heritance. I'll also ask her while I'm at it why she has told lies about you and not told me that you have published articles in 'Transfigurations Today' that I feel embarrassed to hear discussed because I have not known about them; and why she has tried to frighten me with such lies about Durmstrang."

"It IS a lot better than it was in our young day" said Attila "To be fair to her."

"Then she had done better giving me practical advice about getting a good man to fag for and asking the elves nicely to bags me a decent dorm and find some pleasant fellows to share with and band together against possible bullies" said Zoltan "Which I got from Sigismund who got it from HIS mother."

"And Frau Von Luytens" said Sigismund. "Are you going to be taken ill so you can miss morning school, Zol, only we're running a little tight right now?"

"Are you all right now we've had a bit of a talk?" asked Attila. "Well I mean, you're not all right but can you cope or do you need time out?"

Zoltan pulled himself up.

"I can cope" he said "I KNOW my bloodkin love me; and I know in my heart you love me, papa; you don't protest it as much as mama."

Attila laid a hand on his younger son's shoulder; and nodded to Sigismund.

"Then you lads had better get on your way and moan about me" he said "You have potions first, don't you, Zoltan? Professor Von Freyer is blooded, so she'll understand" he added as Zoltan nodded.

"Are you sweet on her, papa?" he asked.

Attila flushed.

"I – I don't quite know yet" he said "I shan't hide that I am attracted."

"She's cool" said Zoltan casually, nodding.

"Yeah" said Sigismund. "You'll have to blood in."

"I wish I could anyway; to try to be closer to you boys" said Attila softly.

They exchanged glances, nodded, and went their separate ways.

Attila wondered how sometimes Marauders could be so very adult. He was so PROUD of his sons!

oOoOo

Cacilia nodded as Zoltan made apology for being tardy to class.

"I know you were running an errand for another professor" she said "And as I am a very junior member of staff I can hardly put HIM in detention for your tardiness! We are brewing the pepperup potion; I am sure you will quickly catch up, work at your own pace until you catch up to the instructions I have written on the board."

Zoltan gave her a smile and slid into his seat next to Felicks.

"Mean ol' creep to make you late!" whispered Felicks.

"Oh it was not his fault" Zoltan whispered back "Circumstances."

Cacilia considered making comment about the whispered conversation but her attention was distracted by the dark purple smoke pouring out of Ingeborg Mundbessen's cauldron. Ingeborg was one of the two girls who Cacilia doubted should ever be permitted near cauldrons; and this was worse than usual.

"Ingeborg, what have you put in that?" asked Cacilia sharply.

"Some stuff from that jar on the front desk" said Ingeborg. "Wasn't I supposed to?"

Cacilia cast the vanishing spell on the toxic slag in the bottom of Ingeborg's cauldron and flipped a hand to open a window and summon a breeze to remove the dense fumes.

"Ingeborg, can you read what I have written on the board?" asked Cacilia. If the child had a sight problem or a dyslexia problem there was some excuse.

"Oh yes of course, Frau Professor!" said the child.

"Will you read it out to me now then and tell me if at any point you come upon the words 'place into cauldron an unmeasured amount of stuff from the jar on the front desk'?"

"Oh I know it isn't up on the board, Frau Professor, but my mind wandered and I wondered if I had missed you saying to do it when I wasn't listening" said Ingeborg.

"Ingeborg, why have you come to school?" Cacilia was getting irritated.

"To make appropriate connections and snare a good husband" said Ingeborg promptly.

"I see" said Cacilia "MOST people view school as a place for serious study; the chance to better themselves; to gain an education. There are thousands of young witches and wizards who would love the opportunity to gain the extremely high level of education that Durmstrang offers; yet you plan to waste the years you have here merely making connections and deciding which man to either sell yourself to or purchase depending on where the fortune lies? I consider your very existence an insult to those of us who have studied hard to gain our qualifications and who work hard to prepare lessons for our pupils; and you are also a living insult to those children who are here to gain an education and those who work hard like Fraulein Brandt" she nodded to the other thoroughly dire girl "To try to overcome any deficiencies in their technique" and she smiled encouragingly at poor little wall-eyed Liselotte Brandt whose potion was muddy and foul smelling; but she was trying hard. She should have the child approached by the four senior marauders to chant her eye straight when the child was settled in. "You have wasted expensive salamander blood which was to be used by the exam class; because you were wool gathering. Did it not occur to you to ASK if I had said anything about this jar?"

"No Frau Professor; I could not think it would be down if we were not to use it" said Ingeborg.

"It is down because it is heavy and awkward and I did not wish to be getting it down in a hurry and maybe slip with it for my afternoon's class; but it is possible it was out waiting for a member of the sixth to come in to do private study in the corner, as happens sometimes; or been part of a potion I was brewing for the school – as is also my job – or been waiting for quality testing because I had suspicions about it; there are any number of reasons why I might have a jar of some ingredient down other than that it is there for your use" said Cacilia "And do you think I should have an ingredient out without you having – at your early stage – some written reference as to how much to use? I'm not sure if your problem is, Fraulein Mundbessen, whether you ever use what is between your ears to think with, or if there is actually a void there that you have indeed nothing to think WITH!" said Cacilia. She was beginning to sympathise with Ihor Rebet and his snippy manner. "You are banned forthwith from potions; I refuse point blank to teach anyone who is not prepared to learn. And if your attitude is similar in other classes and you get banned from any more, I anticipate that your parents may be asked to withdraw you; we could offer the place to a willing student. This is a school not a marriage mart, now leave!"

Ingeborg left, with a little flounce.

And good riddance, thought Cacilia.

She did murmur to Zoltan before he left at the end of class, after producing a fair potion,

"If you want to talk to anyone anytime, I'm available."

Zoltan nodded and smiled a tight little smile. Poor child! The letter he had received had really upset him. Cacilia wanted to gather him to her and tell him that it would be all right; but she knew something of the war between his parents – Jade had filled in her satellites before they came to teach so they could watch out for Sigismund and Zoltan – and it might NOT be all right. And he was too old really for such demonstrations. She sighed and turned to prepare for her next class, the fearless fourth, a decent bunch on the whole bar a couple of bad apples; and a sight better than the majority of the feckless fifth. Cacilia would happily dispense with all but half a dozen of the fifth and was tempted to threaten – as Professor Snape was wont to do – to poison them to check how good they were on antidotes. Well THAT was something to hold in reserve!

oOoOo

Zoltan applied himself assiduously to lessons for the rest of the day, taking notes on the different soil types and how they affected growth of different plants; that some plants were lime lovers and some preferred an ericaceous – a horrid word to spell – soil. Then they repotted a selection of herbs – nice safe herbs with nothing worse then the hairy stems of borage – in the soil they most liked. They were growing on summer cuttings that Frau Professor Kluba had taken with a class in June; and they were also planting out the cuttings of the previous year in the knot shaped herb garden Frau Kluba maintained carefully.

"Please Frau Professor, does the knot shape have any significance in the pattern magic the English teach?" Zoltan asked, having heard about Prince Peak's endeavours in art magic as well as music from Volodya Potishev "Too deter slugs and things?"

"My dear child! I did not even know there was such a thing; it may have been initially designed with that in mind, I don't rule it out; my goodness, I wish I had known of that as an idea to ask at the symposium; but I shall write to Professor Snape and ask him what he knows of it!" said Professor Kluba, who was an academic's academic and had no hesitation in admitting it if there was something she did not know. And even less hesitation in trying to find out.

"Creep" muttered Czerny who felt grubbing in the dirt was a waste of time and being poor at potioneering did not even see it as a necessary adjunct.

"No, just interested" said Zoltan. "Having, unlike you, enough brain cells to rub together to get coherent thought not the nasty mush of spite and malice that gyrates turgidly inside your skull waiting to be regurgitated in what you fondly believe to be wit."

Czerny went for him with a hoe; and cried out in horror as it transfigured into a snake. He was holding the head end.

"Children! What is going on?" Professor Kluba looked up at the cry.

"Nothing Frau Professor" said Zoltan "Czerny's a bit uncontrolled in his hoe use and I used transfiguration to stop an accident."

"My goodness! Very adept!" said Professor Kluba "Herr Czerny, get another hoe and try to be a little more careful in future."

"Don't let this thing sting me!" howled Czerny.

"Snakes don't sting, dear, those that have poison fangs bite; and that is a perfectly harmless grass snake; stop making such a fuss" said Professor Kluba who was quite equal to dealing with minor pests like snakes. "Herr Nagy, you seem undisturbed by a harmless little grass snake, perhaps you will remove it."

"Yes Frau Professor" said Zoltan bending to pick up the snake. _**ssss**__come little brother; let us move you to a more convivial spot__**ssss**_ he added.

"PARSELMOUTH!" cried Czerny "He's a dark wizard! I KNEW he was some sort of pariah that Professor Nagy would not travel with him!"

"TRY not to be even sillier, Herr Czerny" said Kunigunde Kluba impatiently. "Thank you Herr Nagy; how useful to have a Parselmouth; is Professor Carcano aware?"

"I don't think so ma'am" said Zoltan "I hadn't bothered to mention it; is it then of any significance? Why does he call me a dark wizard? I'm not a sad little git that likes to hurt others."

"It is a rare skill, dear" said Kunegunde Kluba. "It runs in only a few families, mostly they say in England."

"Oh, that would explain it; I learned it from some of the members of the ECC" said Zoltan in an offhand tone.

"Well well! I did not know it could be taught; you learn something every day!" said Professor Kluba "Don't forget to pat down the earth around your plants once they are nicely embedded in the earth, and then water them in; you just about have time before the bell."

oOoOo

"You're a liar; you don't learn Parseltongue you have to be born with it" hissed Czerny, nipping Zoltan's arm again as they went to wash up for lunch.

"And you're just so convinced of your own stupid beliefs that I'm not going to bother to dignify that with an answer" said Zoltan "But if you don't piss off and leave me alone I'm going to call duel on you and then maybe I WILL convince you to leave me alone; because if you don't like snakes I bet you'd hate me to turn all your fingers into snakes; and I think there's a spell to summon them out of the wand that I could look up and if you pinch me once more I am going to come up with something drastic enough that you will not be able to get anyone to undo it except a marauder and they won't because they don't like bullies and would-be dark wizards – which you are, you sad little creep, pretending you didn't know that Herr Gierek was talking about you when he was urging those with a desire to use the dark arts to talk to him!"

"Shut up! He did NOT mean ME; I am not miserable nor one down, it is you that is the loser!" screeched Czerny, pinching Zoltan again.

"I think that was a stupid thing to do" said Zoltan calmly. He turned and went away, furiously considering exactly what to do.

By the preparation period they had in their own form rooms after Mittagessan he had formulated an idea and had undertaken a chant; and when the children sat down at their desks Czerny screeched when his desk lid tried to bite him as he attempted to open it.

Stiv Molotov, taking prep, came to see the reason for the disorder.

"Looks like Marauder work" he said "How come you managed to piss off a marauder that badly kid?"

"I gave him fair warning that if he pinched me again I should retaliate" said Zoltan.

"Well, that's fair do's kid, but this is interfering with the staff because he can't get at his books" said Stiv "You do see that I hope?"

"I guess I hadn't thought of that Herr Molotov" said Zoltan.

"Well take it off and we'll say no more about it" said Stiv. Zoltan flushed.

"Actually, I'm not sure how to" he said.

"Well that's daft for you!" said Stiv "Here, YOU can jolly well help me to move it and I'll have to give up MY prep time disenchanting the ruddy thing; and that IS going to mean an Impot."

"Sorry" said Zoltan, going over to the desk. Experimentally he touched the lid. "I say, Herr Molotov, it seems to like me better than Czerny; suppose we just swap and I get out his books for him?"

"Best solution yet; and an excellent way to keep your own kit safe" grinned Stiv "If it'll only tolerate you opening it. The brat looks too much like his cousin for me not to take your word over his even without having already heard stories. Stand back Herr Czerny."

Zoltan emptied his own books out of his desk – he did not want Czerny pawing at them and besides the letter from his mother was in there – and swapped desks and passed Czerny's books to him from the now quiescent desk. He did not look at them.

Stiv did.

"Have you got permission to have this book?" he asked Czerny of a book about painful jinxes.

"It's my own copy" said Czerny sulkily "It isn't a library book; I don't have to have permission."

"Hmmm" said Stiv "Well I'm confiscating it while I find out from a staff member whether it's an acceptable book for a first year to have in his possession. Very well, carry on; you've lost five minutes of prep, and Herr Nagy can stay for double that length of time into his leisure to make up for the trouble he's caused me."

Zoltan nodded agreement; that could have been worse.

The rest of the class had much enjoyed the excitement and made expressions of sympathy – even some of the Germans not in his dormitory – as the rest subsequently filed out. Stiv wrote steadily on an essay for Herr Gierek glad to get the time to finish it in what would otherwise be a forbidden period for prep. A prefect imposition of detention was the perfect time to finish the prep interrupted by the junior who was being detained – with the extra five minutes he needed too! Neat trick too, the biting desk; bright kid Nagy.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Zoltan took advantage of Fraulein Professor Von Freyer's offer to visit her after school.

He showed her the letter.

"If you had a little boy would you write to him that you were hurt that he did not miss you and tick him off for so-called obvious lies about being happy?" he said.

"No I shouldn't" said Cacilia "I can only assume your mother misses you because she does NOT have the busy whirl of being at school to fill her life as you have and finds it hard to believe that you don't miss her as much as she misses you; forgetting that if you DID, then she would be a wicked woman to pack you off to boarding school. She seems rather incredulous that you should be getting on with your father as well as about you making friends; have you then previously found it hard to make friends?"

"I don't know, ma'am; mama has never let me play with anyone to find out" said Zoltan. "But it is WRONG of her to call me a liar when SHE's the one who's told blatant lies about Papa!"

"Or spoken as she sees it from a somewhat skewed point of view" said Cacilia who thought the letter a terrible thing to write to an eleven year old boy, more or less accusing him of being happy to spite her. "I do not want to encourage you to read into it what she may not mean."

"Are you sweet on papa?" asked Zoltan bluntly.

"I – yes I am" said Cacilia, blushing "So you must see, as a potential 'other woman' – I do NOT intend to be any short term lover – I must be even more tactful and careful; particularly as I don't even know how you and Sigismund would feel if I were your father's mistress."

"We discussed it when we sussed he was sweet on you and we think it's cool" said Zoltan "But I see you feel you have to be extra fair; like Papa would be more fair to anyone I had quarrel with than with me. But it ISN'T a nice letter, is it?"

"It isn't" sighed Cacilia. "I can see where all this has come from; if you will let me explain some things, even if it doesn't make you less angry now, it might help you to feel sorry for your mother in the future. You see, the sex act is really very intrusive for a woman; and if she doesn't want it can actually, I am told, be very painful. And your parents were part of an arranged marriage; I don't know if they even KNEW each other, or if so not very well; potentially she already did not like your father much. The idea of having so intimate an act with someone who is essentially a stranger is quite terrifying. It would scare me. And your father is a big, tall, muscular man; as you are much slighter of build I guess your mother is slight too; his size could add to a terror of him. Terror and pain can be soul destroying and resentment over the whole business easily becoming hate for him."

"Well I guess I acknowledge that; I didn't know about it being so scary; I didn't ever think about it" said Zoltan "But then why does she hate ME? She must do because she's done her best to make me scared of papa and of coming to school – she really succeeded too; I hated the thought of it until Sigismund talked to me. And why has she used ME to get at him?"

Cacilia sighed.

"Because I'm afraid she's rather a silly, shallow, selfish creature. I – I won't say she might not resent the baby that came out of the painful act; and birth itself is painful too. Especially if, in perversity, she would not permit your father near with spells that can ease birthing. I fear that it is mostly that she sees you as HER baby – and does not really see you as a person. Which is her loss; and you should try to pity her."

Cacilia could not pity the wretched woman; but it was wrong to spoil a child's relationship with one parent. She must go the extra mile for Zoltan's sake, in case he could forgive his foolish mother.

"I can't; I'm too angry" said Zoltan "I – I thought she loved me; and I loved her; and now I think I HATE her!"

"That's a very strong word" said Cacilia "And of course, love and hate are very close and easier to turn one into the other with something like a betrayal; as this appears to be. If I were you, I'd take a bludger and a beater and attack Gerhardt at the lakeside for a while until you're drained of all that hate. Hate is not good for you; it eats the soul and THAT is why your mother has forgotten that you are a person; she has let her hate for your father overcome her love for you, as a dark wizard is overcome by the dark arts he tries fruitlessly to control."

"All right; I'll do that; and when I've gotten it out then I'll write to her and ask her why she is angry with me for being a normal schoolboy" said Zoltan. "Why did Czerny say that being a Parselmouth meant I was a dark wizard?" he asked suddenly.

"Because there have been some notorious dark wizards who have been Parselmouths" said Cacilia "Because the families it runs in naturally tend to admire the snake and go for cold blooded logic that, if they err on the dark side can take them further into the dark arts before becoming dippy and so they do a better job of their dark wizardry and get remembered. Like Voldemort. We are Parselmouths because we are blooded to Harry Potter, who acquired part of Voldemort's soul when his mother's sacrifice bounced the killing curse; and to Krait Snape, who is Voldemort's daughter; and to Lindhard Natterzahn who just happens to be born with it naturally as was Voldemort. The idea that it indicates a dark wizard is superstition; and that you have to be born with it. Before he was a part of the Blood Group, I understand Professor Albus Dumbledore managed to teach himself Parseltongue; and nobody could accuse HIM of being a dark wizard! Czerny is a silly and nasty little boy; and if I were you I'd lie low and not retaliate too much because sooner or later he IS going to overreach himself and Agata is then going to remember how much she loathes the entire family. I've run out of biscuits now I'm afraid; if you want to attack Gerhardt while it's still light I'd hop along sharpish if I were you; but you can come to me at any time. Then you need not feel you're taking advantage of having a father here."

"Oh you DO understand!" Zoltan flung his arms around Cacilia; and she hugged him back, reflecting that she would like to shake Madam Nora Nagy until what few brains she might possess ran out of her silly nose.

oOoOo

The Second Durmstrang Marauders had been plotting to pull off a jape and decided on one that demonstrated their virtuosity as spell casters that was also utterly harmless and even a compliment to the persons japed.

The targets were the prefects – all of them, which meant a tricky piece of chanting to be sure and catch the Asimov twins – and had been based on the honky-tonk twingletoes hex; save that instead of music issuing from the feet of the jinxed, flowers grew and bloomed briefly wherever they walked, lasting some thirty seconds before gently dissipating.

It was carefully choreographed so that all the spells were cast as the prefects came to breakfast, that they did so treading their unconsciously flowery route to the senior table.

"Have the prefects noticed their exotic following at all?" asked Agata dryly using a sonorous spell to reach the flowered few.

Various prefects whipped round and stared at their embellished footsteps.

"Well it's quieter than adorning our feet with music" said Zhanargul, giving a rueful laugh. "RATHER pretentious however; so I hope our fans will forgive us for cancelling our flower strewn way" and she cast _finite incantatem._ The Asimov twins had to chant briefly to get rid of their flowers; and grinned ruefully that they had been treated with the due respect of having a more solid enchantment attached to them!

It had amused everyone and done no harm; but in no wise lessened the shock to Zhanargul as she opened the daily paper to read.

Blood drained from her face; and she rose.

"Frau Bacsó" she said "I must ask you to read the front page of the 'Ursprungen Sonn'."

Agata and the other members of staff quickly looked at the paper. The headline was

"Dark Wizard escapes from Nurmengard!"

The story covered the escape of Tulegen Nurtazin aided and abetted by an unknown witch and wizard who had raised enough dementors to terrify the guards and in the confusion had broken in and taken away the prisoner. They had used polyjuice potion to resemble two prominent muggles and as such could not be identified. The paper hinted at a muggle conspiracy before declaring that muggles could not raise dementors; but it was a nasty piece of poison.

Cacilia blinked and leaned over to Agata.

"Information from Jade" she said quietly "Suggesting that it has to be one of the unpleasant girls in the sixth last year who would be knowledgeable about us setting up wards. The previous Arithmancy professor being apparently too wet as well as not really knowing what was going on. She suggests Nachtigall also and his father; either that or cohorts from Kazakhstan, though if you ask me they'd not be likely to choose the guises of prominent German muggles."

"That makes sense" said Agata. "There's not a lot we can do except see that all is secure; Volodya, take the senior chanters and make sure the wards are secure."

"The blooded will discuss it" said Cacilia. "Attila; I think it is proper that you join us. You will be better able to protect your sons. Agata; do you prefer to hold out of it?"

"If Attila is to be there for Sigismund I will follow Albus Dumbledore's example and hold neutral while I am head of this school" said Agata. "Severus was already part of it when he took over Prince Peak."

She did not mention that too the thought of being blood-joined to many, including the compelling Severus Snape, actually frightened her.

oOoOo

The senior chanters – or rather the marauders among them – went directly to Zhanargul after breakfast and demanded exactly twenty three drops of blood.

"You will then find my uncle again?" asked Zhanargul.

"Natch; but I have the phial to do THAT with" said Zlatka "This is to put in place an engulfing charm to catch only your uncle and deposit him in the dungeon where we stuck the lich. The Belle Marauders in Hogwarts did it to a wicked uncle of some of the kids there; we aren't going to refine it so much as they did, using purely Malfoy Lines and excluding anyone of that lineage except the wicked uncle; but we ARE going to do it for anyone of your blood. Your parents aren't likely to visit and we'll build in a password that you'll have to chant as you come through it…. Or say 'open' in Parseltongue because you can. Easy as. And in case you forget have that as a way to open the dungeon door too."

"Heh, make it open a GATE through the dungeon door" said Xanthippe "Because if he's pursuing her she can run full tilt into the engulfing charm and then straight OUT of the dungeon as he blunders into it after her."

"A melodramatic scenario but it has its charm" said Zlatko "I like it."

"He's such a snide bastard" said Xanthe.

She did not seem to be treating that as a fault; Zlatko appeared to have collected a Eulenspiegel twin on each arm and seemed remarkably content with the situation.

oOoOo

Zlatko did the Arithmancy of where to drop each drop of blood and set a chanter at each point; there were twenty three blooded senior chanters counting Volodya and Zlatko called in Cacilia too in order that Volodya might set the blood ritually by each during the chanting and be the focus too.

The third marauders were put out to be left out of it; but accepted the explanation of the exigencies of Arithmancy and were happy to brew coffee instead for the chanters and feed them power. As Clovis fed power too; he was learning chanting but had not been involved from the first as most of the others had.

oOoOo

That evening saw a blooding ceremony to bring in Attila. Zoltan and Sigismund were wildly excited; and Cacilia was trying hard not to be wildly excited and not succeeding. Zoltan had taken her advice to try to ignore Czerny as well as having vented his anger on the violent stone snowman; and had written a reasoned enough letter that was, had he but known it, so cold in tone that it quite frightened his mother how much he actually understood what was going on.

But tonight he was so happy because his father's blood sang with his and he KNEW that the big man loved him, however inarticulate he might be over expressing his emotions.

Cacilia kept her own emotions well covered; this was a time for a father and his sons, not for her and Attila to be exploring their feelings for each other.

Attila said softly to Cacilia as the little ones headed for bed,

"I see what you mean now; of course you could not contemplate any kind of liaison with someone not blooded; and nor could you contemplate anything that might hurt one or another party within the blooded. I still do not know the extent of my feelings."

"We can find out; there's no hurry" said Cacilia. "Zoltan in particular is more important; that is one unhappy little boy over that silly cow of a mother of his; I want to turn her upside-down and shake her to see if her brains rattle."

"You too, huh?" said Attila.

"I suppose you, being too callow when you wed her, did not realise the poor silly creature was afraid of you and made some bluff and fatuous joke on your wedding night and wondered why she dissolved into tears?" said Cacilia.

"You were there?" Attila joked feebly.

"I can guess at the type from the letter" said Cacilia "She's a clinger; and there she was, bereft of support and probably genuinely frightened; and you make light of her fears – as she sees it. Did you demand your marital rights?"

"From a dripping cauldron? Thank you, no! The only time I ever insisted on my conjugal rights was when I was upset because Sigismund was going to have to be adopted and Nora would not let me have a divorce to marry my mistress; she didn't want me but she didn't want anyone else to have me either. Dog in the manger. So I said that if she did not expect me to have a mistress she should provide appropriate succour herself; and I raped her. I'm not proud of it. I tried to apologise later but she wouldn't have it; and when I tried to suggest, once she was clearly pregnant, that we should try to be civil for the sake of the child I could see this unholy light come into her eyes as she realised that I wanted a son and that she could use that to play me. She's sick" he added in disgust.

"I have to say she sounds it" said Cacilia "I could sympathise with a woman scared of you, had you NOT had the self control to eschew carnal relations with her."

"What do you think I am?" he snapped.

"I think you were a young man who was also resentful; it takes a strong minded and special young man NOT to think that as he has been forced into marriage, he might as well enjoy the physical aspects of it; and I suspect in many such situations, he too half blames the bride. You walked away when she showed her fear."

"How could I do anything else? She looked at me as though I was a dementor!"

"And you tried to get to know her and because you are bluff of manner she got more and more monosyllabic out of terror of your – as she perceived it – rough manners, especially if you were trying to jolly her with the sort of clumsy jokes embarrassed young men make. Picture Stiv Molotiv courting someone even as sensible yet oversensitive as Desolina Uccello. And she got weepy and you, who were doing your best, started shouting at her, convincing her that you were the violent ape she feared, because the wet moo had never actually known what real violence was."

"That more or less sums it up" he admitted "I take your point about Stiv and Desolina; though Desolina has ten times the spirit Nora ever had!"

"THAT's hard to swallow; don't forget being part of the ECC has boosted her no end, I should think if she had continued as Nachtigall's fag she'd be no end depressed. All right, so Nora was spiritless; and you, poor young fool, knew no better way to boost her spirit than to harangue her about it."

"Oh I fully admit I fuelled her hatred" said Attila. "It became a childish game of sniping at each other. Then when I landed the job in Durmstrang I was so relieved to get away from her I just upped and left."

"I wouldn't mind betting" said Cacilia "That your continued gentlemanly refusal to take your marital rights and then your leaving her joyously to teach other people's children actually fuelled her despite; perversely she felt you had disrespected her by not actually wanting to bed her; and besides it prevented her from having the chance to deny you her body and shout 'no' at you. And you were pleased to leave her; she felt slighted. She didn't want you but she wanted to be wanted anyway."

"That's totally perverse!"

"Women can be; haven't you learned that with your vast experience?"

"Who says I have a vast experience?"

"The cards you kept in your desk which sent love from any number of female names, and the odd photo in 'hochhexen' showing you with some minor celebrity on your arm" said Cacilia "Which, if it was a paper Nora took – and it's the sort of paper silly females tend to take – would make her more offended. We used to see if we could sniff you to see what flavour perfume you smelt of at the beginning of each term to see if you'd changed mistresses. When we were about thirteen and such things were of academic interest I hasten to add" she added.

"Great powers!" said Attila "I think I'm actually shocked that you children were so knowing! Surely YOU never took 'Hochhexen'?"

"No but it was a magazine that was in the school; and we had a normal teenage prurient interest in the peccadilloes of our elders" said Cacilia.

"Alas for my dignity that my peccadilloes were known to the woman I admire in her tender years!" cried Attila. Cacilia grinned.

"I'd rather know about them than have you keep me in the dark" she said "Anyway, you can tell me all about your lovers – as much as a gentleman may – that I may use them as a yardstick of such skills as I must acquire to attract and please you; and you can then grade me, for you ARE one of my one time teachers after all" and she twinkled at him. He gasped.

"You are a bad girl!" he said.

Cacilia chuckled.

"It seems to get your attention" she said.

"Girl you have my attention quite thoroughly already; I'm trying to ignore it" he said. "Though fury over Nora does help distract me over your charms I must say."

"And I shall resist the temptation to suggest kissing it better" said Cacilia "THAT route would soon be downhill in a hurry…. Save discussing the boys we should confine ourselves with discussing academic matters."

"I suspect that will lead to arguments as it did in class" said Attila.

"I am quite capable of holding up my end of an argument I think" said Cacilia "And we can count up all the arguments and then when we know each other well enough to get properly together we can then spend a lot of time making up over them."

"You are a thoroughgoing minx; and I shall count to three and if you aren't out of sight I AM going to kiss you" said Attila. Cacilia giggled and fled, firmly making herself leave and not invite the heady delight of his kiss.

oOoOo

The quidditch team could not afford to worry too much about dark wizards unless they had the bad manners to attack; for there were matches to play. That Saturday had a fixture, and there was another in a fortnight; and it had been decided to play the Hogwarts team in the middle of the week to fit it in, for the weather might close in as suddenly in Scotland as in Germany; and generally in a wetter and more miserable way. Playing quidditch on a fine cold day with a little snow on the ground was a far cry from playing in the interminable Scots Mist that had heavy rain in the fog.

There was in the meantime a certain amount of excitement.

Zahid Malik went to Attila Nagy to report that Zsombor Czerny had left the dormitory at some point during the night and had not returned and he was not in the bathroom and did Herr Nagy think he might be in trouble.

"He will be for breaking bounds when I find him" growled Attila who had watched Czerny try to bully his younger son and get angrier and angrier as Zoltan acted as though he could not see, hear or feel the other boy. And at one point Zoltan had shared the pain of a nasty attempted Chinese burn so he might look indifferent; and Attila ground his teeth. If only he could catch the boy at it! If he had tried to get at some older marauders and was stuffed bonelessly in a locker somewhere he must punish the marauders of course; but he could also punish Czerny for being out of his bed. He was so PROUD of the way Zoltan was handling it; and had managed to murmur as much to the boy. He asked Malik "Did you go to the hospital to see if he was taken ill in the night?"

Malik goggled.

"No sir, I had not thought of that" he said.

"It IS rather a place that should be eliminated" said Attila dryly and proceeded to go and look. Czerny had not reported sick; so that made mischief making even more likely.

He was not in the cloakrooms; or the broom sheds; nor in the library nor any of the boot lockers. Attila scratched his head and Malik was hopping up and down wondering if Czerny had been drowned in the lake.

"No such luck" growled Attila.

"Sir! Is he not then your favourite of the two Hungarian boys?" asked Malik.

"No he assuredly is not!" snapped Attila "And the only reason I show him any favour is that it is improper to show favour to my young relative who has too much pride to complain about your nasty friend's nasty tricks; that I am hoping he has tried on a senior and learned to his detriment is not wise. But the little fool is not anywhere one might expect him."

"Lost something, Attila?" Clovis Gierek came up to the transfigurationist.

"Yes, a nasty little boy who was out of his bed, doubtless up to no good" said Attila "And who is not in any of the places usually used to stow those jinxed into oblivion."

"This is his friend?" asked Clovis. Malik hesitated and nodded. "Run boy and bring me his hairbrush; I'll show you a neat trick, Attila, I learned from Draco and Harry" added Clovis.

With the hairbrush wiped onto a piece of paper, Clovis folded it as a flapping bird and released it with a finding charm on it. It fluttered off.

The two professors and one small boy followed it.

It led them to the music room where a terrified and blubbing Zsombor Czerny was depended from one ankle, pale green and covered in little tentacles. He was also nursing his arm and one foot looked much bruised and swollen; the poker from the room's fire irons lay on the floor by the cello and the boy's wand also lay on the floor smoking slightly.

Attila picked up the wand.

"Oh sir, RESCUE me!" cried Czerny "That rotten brat Zoltan Nagy has done this to me!"

Attila ignored him and cast _priori incantatem_ on the wand. The image of the incinerating spell was clear to see.

"I see that the clever chanters in the music group have set up similar safeguards on their instruments as the senior among them set up on their brooms last year" said Attila conversationally to Clovis.

"Yes, clever work; two layers to counter both jinxes and physical attack – judging by the poker on the floor, the broken arm on the nasty little thief and the bruise on his foot" said Clovis.

"I'm NOT a THIEF!" cried Czerny.

"No?" Clovis' voice dripped with sarcasm "What else do you call it to destroy property and thereby deprive the use of it to their owners? Or to steal the time for which Professor Potishev is paid in being unable to carry out his duties for your actions? That is stealing from the Headmistress and the Governors. You failed to destroy one or more instruments and resorted to a quite powerful spell – it must have smarted when your wand got blown up with a spell powered by the strength of whatever you cast – because you are a thief."

"I only wanted to pay back that Nagy brat; he's a dark wizard and he's a Parselmouth and he ought to show more humility if he's descended from some scum that means you refuse to have anything to do with him sir! I'm trying to do what you surely want me to in putting him in his place!"

"Clovis, take that filthy little beast down and to the Headmistress before I rend him limb from limb for his incontinent drivel" said Attila "You may inform him why I ignore Zoltan as it seems likely to be the only way to stop the creeping little bastard from hurting him that he scorns to report. I'm going" and he walked out.

"Congratulations for telling a man that you want to hurt his son by destroying his cello and congratulations too for telling Professor Nagy what you think of his background" said Clovis. "Well he wanted to make sure his son was not bullied and called teacher's pet; you seem to have got the whole business so twisted that you bully him for NOT being related to Professor Nagy. He knows about the sly nips and pinches; we've all seen it and we respect our colleague's desire not to be overly protective of his son. You disgust us all mind you" he added. "And you never once asked for help over being the only one in the class who is so pathetic he seems to think jinxing and pinching other kids is the only way to make himself seem better. The lower sixth are of the opinion that your cousin is the unknown witch who helped get a prisoner out of Nurmengard and they are of the opinion that you should be attached to a pole and used as a shield if he and your cousin come calling here. THEY have noticed your tricks too, you know. Oh, by the way, if your spell had worked and the fire spread to the other instruments – as it would have done – how were you planning to pay for them? Especially Herr Potishev's viola that is an antique worth somewhere in the region of five thousand galleons? And what would you have done when you met his intemperate Russian temper that I could not really have blamed him for and he decided to get the worth from you in work and used the English magic he has studied to turn you into a house elf bound to him as a slave? Just as well from your point of view that the senior chanters DO protect their property from nasty little thieves and saboteurs. Come along, you clod; YOU are going to the headmistress."

Clovis had learned the prefect spell _Audipunit_ and used it with a slight twist to drag the boy to the head's office by the ankle rather than the ear.

He explained to Agata why she had an upside-down boy in a nightshirt with sundry self inflicted injuries.

Agata righted Czerny and proceeded to tell him much the same things that he had already heard from Clovis but in a voice of cold anger rather then the sneeringly unconcerned tone Clovis had used, having picked that up from Draco.

It went in better perhaps for the way it had already been delivered by Clovis.

"But if Herr Nagy didn't want us to think he thought his son a pariah he should have shown him favour!" he cried.

"And have his son subjected to the fools who would suck up to a teacher or those who would attack him for dislike of his father? No reasonable parent does that; as I do not expose MY son to such!" said Agata coldly. "You and your cousin seem to expect favours from any Hungarian staff member and assume any but you do not; and I do not do favours for anyone and none of my staff do either. You are not so good a scholar that I should be sorry to let you go; and I shall have to decide whether to expel you or not. Go to the sick bay; you can have your wounds tended there and stay there out of the way of decent children while I decide what to do about you!"

"Did you know Ma'am that Nagy's a Parselmouth? And I expect his father is too; they're dark wizards plotting to take over the school from you!" tried Czerny.

Agata slapped him hard.

"You nasty minded little boy; you are a poison mouth not a Parselmouth. And Parseltongue is taught only to the brightest and the best so you need not hope to learn it. Go away; the longer I have to see you the more I think I might like to expel you!"

Czerny went; and then Agata had to deal with an angry school nurse and explain that the boy had inflicted his injuries on himself trying to destroy the possessions of the boy who he accused of breaking his arm and foot.

It made up Agata's mind; and she asked Volodya to remove the green shade and tentacles before the boy's father arrived to take him home.

oOoOo

The first knew nothing about anything that had happened and wondered – with good humour – what kept Czerny from class. Malik readily explained about what had happened in the music room and what spell had been shown on the boy's wand and Felicks had jumped up in horror to exclaim that this would surely have destroyed all the instruments including Herr Potishev's beautiful old Viola.

One of the Germans suggested beating up Zoltan for being another Hungarian; and Felicks told him to talk sense as it was Zoltan that Czerny was trying to get at.

Fortunately Clovis walked in at that moment – it was a dark arts class – in time to stop a riot and demanded the reason for the noise. Malik told him.

"Herr Steiner – again" said Clovis "You are a silly child. You might as well say that Fraulein Professor Nachtigall should be beaten up because her family was attacked and made into werewolves by members of Odessa and Odessa was led by a German; it has as much sense of logic. Or that I should pick on YOU because you come from the same home town as my mother who was cast off by her family and neighbours for marrying my Polish father. But actually, Herr Steiner, I don't blame you for being my first cousin once removed; you didn't ask to be my cousin's child. I know you kids are only eleven but don't you think some of you could manage to act as though you're older than six? It's really very boring to keep hearing that the first are having race riots like a bunch of medieval peasants with no more education then to believe that such things count. I DO hope you've grown out of it by next year; so embarrassing for you to have the new intake despising you as morons aspiring to idiocy. Now get out your textbooks and turn to page sixty four; we've wasted quite enough time and you shall have longer preparation to make up for it."

Freidrich Steiner was given a lot of hard looks for this.

Which had been, on Clovis' part, the general idea. He had some ability in leadership; leading the rasher fools into crusades of racial purity was the last thing they wanted!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The match against the Brandenburg Beaters had an unusual interruption.

It had been trying to sleet and having play called off for bad weather was a possibility because the winds at Durmstrang in snowstorms could be vicious and the wind was picking up.

It also brought with it the smell of death; and from somewhere in the crowd the cry 'INFERII!' went up.

There was a mad scramble to be away from the incoming dozen or so wafting drifting corpses, half walking half floating in on the breeze; and it may be said that a number of spectators were stopped short by the full body bind by prefects led by Takeo Namudzu.

"Have you no shame? You will push past the little ones you cowards!" cried Takeo "Possibly injuring them! Adults to wait until children are taken to safety!"

"You snotty little bastard! Let us go, the brats will have to make what shift they can; those are undead!" howled one fat man.

Takeo promptly hauled him up by one ankle and left him there; paused and dropped the bat bogey hex on him for good measure. He sent Hilde and Gisela to escort the children towards the castle and borrowed the broom of one of the fleeing visiting team to join the Durmstrang team who had – apart from Harald Trollkettil – moved into attack formation.

They were joined by the second marauders and sundry of the fourth year; and Zhanargul did not send them back.

"DURMSTRANG DEFENDS!" she used _Sonorous _to carry it further.

The inferii seemed to want her anyway.

Clovis and Cacilia had acquired brooms by now; Attila took one forcibly from one of the visitors.

"Be just like targeting womprats back home" muttered Clovis who had been introduced by Draco to a certain film.

It hardly took a minute; spells of flame and electricity took the inferii down and reduced them to so many piles of ash.

"Where are the rest?" asked Clovis suspiciously "We took down fifty from Abaris' tomb; Uncle Tulegen surely knows about that? He'd not send a potty dozen against the school surely?"

"They'd get engulfed anyway if they hit the undead repelling line" said Volodya, joining them "Just chanting up a protection from fear; set the juniors continuing it. Clovis, my friend, two powerful wizards took down the inferii there; not mere school children and those who have to teach because they can't get jobs in places they have real power."

"But I was one of the wizards involved; and what's this crap about teaching?" said Clovis "Teaching young minds is as powerful as it gets; an awful responsibility."

"NOT to Tulegen the terminally turgid" said Volodya "If HE was able to take out fifty inferii just like that the way you and Lazlo did he'd consider it beneath him to consort with unformed minds. Lazlo's chatted to me about him, having talked to Prince Isultan. He's probably much impressed with himself. Zhanargul, do have a chat to the reporters; they WILL report scenes of terror. Play it well down."

Zhanargul nodded and let herself be waylaid.

"Fraulein, everyone else was fleeing, you and some of your colleagues actually turned towards the Inferii and – well, mopped them up very efficiently! Would you like to tell me about it?"

"Well there's not a lot to tell, is there?" said Zhanargul "There was only a dozen; I could probably have handled them on my own if I'd had to; such things are the responsibility of the head girl you know! The greatest danger was from the visitors who are the biggest bunch of cowardly criminals unhung who would have trampled our juniors if other prefects had not taken steps to prevent them from doing so; criminally careless and I expect the governors WILL prosecute. I mean, adults, running from a dozen inferii? It's so childish! I know we learn English methods in our dark arts classes now but even so it is rather a disgrace. I should feel shamed to so show myself up! And they are shamed, for we were joined by four of the keener third years, who wanted to take a crack; we didn't permit the first and second to come along for the party; they tend to be more lethal to their fellows with wildly thrown jinxes at that age. It's a question of some nasty people who were expelled for their nastiness who are showing just how ineffectual they really are in some attempt to childishly get back; they could not behave as though they were older than toddlers when they were at school and presumably have not learned any wisdom since. It's a bit of a yawn but I expect the younger ones will enjoy it if they try on any more tricks."

"Why Fraulein, you sound as though it was nothing to beat off an inferius attack!"

"Well it was" said Zhanargul. "We kept looking for the rest; but there didn't seem to be any. We'll put up an undead-frying ward in the morning; it saves trouble though I expect the third will grumble that it cuts down their practise. I rather fancy we can blame Hogwarts for the lack of numbers of dark creatures to practise on though, as they've killed most of them when Odessa were playing silly games. Excuse me; I have a game of quidditch to play."

The game was, as it happened, called off; partly because the Brandenburg Beaters did not like inferii joining the spectators and partly because they took a huff at being laughed at as a bunch of little girls by a bunch of little girls.

oOoOo

Zoltan spent most of the time this was happening comforting Leopold Pessl who was having something akin to hysterics; because this was an attack by Zhanargul's wicked uncle who was like his wicked great aunt; and because a lot of flames were in evidence. Leopold, unsurprisingly, was rather phobic about fire. Zoltan explained that the prefects and marauders were in charge and it would therefore be fine; that the fire was under control and being used by some of the most skilled wizards and witches in the school not by half baked old bags like his great aunt. It was not so much what he said but the soothing tone that helped Leopold; and the boy clenched his fists, got his breathing under control and managed a tremulous smile when Zoltan told him that the problem had been neutralised with the due dispatch any prefect could manage and that the inferii had got a massive detention for cheek.

Professor Nachtigall touched Zoltan on the shoulder.

"Good lad" she said.

He also got praise later from Zlatko when Katarina Nachtigall passed it on.

"It's what marauders do" said Zlatko "Whatever they can. Marauders protect."

oOoOo

Agata meanwhile released the fat little man from levicorpus and as he demanded to know what was to be done to punish the boy who had done this told him icily that he might expect a class action suit against him for child endangerment from all the parents of all the children he had endangered by leading a precipitate and dangerous flight; and would moreover be remembered in comic song for his cowardice as she knew several rock bands who would be glad to make him a musical laughing stock and be sued by Herzog Von Frettchen as governor for endangering the school children far more than the handful of inferii he had run from – only a dozen as Agata pointed out, fit subjects for the third years who had volunteered to be allowed to play with – should HE wish to make a song and dance about her very properly acting prefect; because if he WISHED to draw attention to the fact of his incontinent cowardice then she would most certainly NOT dissuade his youthful potential victims from naming him to their parents.

He owned several quidditch teams it seemed; and Agata made a note to suggest to her pupils who were thinking of a quidditch career that eschewing those teams might not be a bad idea. He also owned large amounts of industrial complexes; and Agata wrote to Jade suggesting him as someone she might just like to ruin.

After all, with counter threats he might have retracted the threat to harm Takeo in any way he could; but he was not forthcoming with any apology either for threatening the prefect or for risking the little ones with his headlong charge to escape the vicinity.

As the four third years had already been on wizarding wireless saying what fun it was to have real dark creatures to practise on that they did not feel a need to hold back as one did when duelling, having his incontinent flight made public would rather make him a laughing stock. Perhaps covertly by his employees! And THAT would never do!

Agata made sure to tell Takeo that she approved his decision to hold those adults fleeing so dangerously; and he bowed.

"My duty to the school as prefect made the decision obvious; the children first" he said. "What choice was there? He might think himself someone; he is nothing to our children."

oOoOo

Those who were nervous of Professor Nagy quailed to hear him having a very loud argument with Professor Von Freyer; those who actually listened to the argument might be aware that it was a highly technical and academic argument. Cacilia had postulated that one might, if one were powerful enough, conjure inferii from the wand without having to actually bother to kill people to make them into an inferius; Attila disagreed, citing Gamp.

"But they aren't covered by Gamp's exceptions!" shouted Cacilia "They aren't food, nor magical potions, nor magical items, nor information and they certainly aren't sentient! They're only creatures like – like a tortoise! Only smellier" she added.

"Foolish girl! Did you then ignore the arguments we had as a class about the subtleties of Gamp's laws? They are simplified for the children who study ZH; it must needs be a simplification for so low a level of understanding; Gamp quantified the exceptions to cover MOST circumstances; do you not recall the argument I had with Nefrita Von Strang? You were surely awake through some of it?"

"Most of what you argued about with Nefrita was her contention that you could circumvent Gamp by adding a permanency charm on a bunny and cooking it in a stew because rabbits are made of sunlight and I don't recall inferii came into it at all!" Cacilia shouted back. This was rather good fun!

"Yes and WHERE did we go after that? That finished potions and magical items could not be produced because the amount of energy required to undertake the ritual effects of the same was inconceivably huge and counter productive! Likewise that sentient life could not be summoned because in order to summon, the summoner HAS to understand the nature of what is summoned; and nobody can actually manage to comprehend the complexities of a sentient brain, even that as loathsomely simple and turgid as a junior, or a professional quidditch player. And Inferii are both magical constructs and were once sentient!"

"Leaving aside your imputations on quidditch players – let us modify it to professional beaters – I don't see that it matters that inferii were once human; they ain't sentient once they get to be inferii" said Cacilia who knew too many first and second years were listening to take issue with their status according to Attila as scarcely sentient; eavesdroppers never heard good of themselves after all.

"It DOES" insisted Attila "You have never studied the dark arts, do not know what goes into the making of an inferius; and part of it is the death agony and fear of death that fuels them into hopeless and fearsome creatures. The echo of sentience fuels their nature; and because a portion of that sentient soul is bound back into the dead body – enough to experience distress for the refinement of cruelty of the dark wizard – the rest of the BEING of the dead person is unable to escape beyond the veil; the link is tenuous but exists. And they are too an enchanted item by the nature of that ritual in that they are magically animated, driven by the portion of self awareness that remains but essentially little more than a suit of armour under the _piertotum_ spell; and yet you could not summon a ready-animated suit of armour even if you were powerful enough to summon a suit of armour. Some very powerful witches and wizards manage to summon magical creatures on the borders of sentience – we know that Professor Fraser has summoned a basilisk which is a quite frightening amount of power – but essentially for most people such creatures are also outside the range of Gamp's law and that covers transfiguration too unless you have the innate understanding of assimilative correlation of someone like Nefrita von Luytens. The best you could do would be to summon an homunculus of some description, that might resemble an inferius but would NOT be such."

"I'd accept that as a bluff if I was up against a dark wizard" opined Cacilia.

"HAH!" Attila grunted "You'd do better to use your very fine ability as a transfigurationist and turn him into a banana because all dark wizards are at bottom yellow!"

"Not a piece of assimilative correlation I should necessarily have come to on my own" said Cacilia "I bow to your superior understanding of Gamp but I'll still laugh if Nefrita ever pulls off summoning an inferius."

"Well write to her and ask if she can; and if she can she can jolly well write to me and explain how" said Attila. "I can't see my way round so many violations of so many inviolate laws; but if she can I'd like to know how."

"If anyone can she can" agree Cacilia "I should perhaps have studied the dark arts more; but I loathed Helmut Hesse and then of course there was Hedda Schrempf."

They went for a coffee; leaving some nervous juniors and some very interested ones who had been doing their best to follow the argument's technical points.

"This Gamp fellow sounds interesting" said Beremud.

"Library work!" declared Sigismund; and six second years and one first year headed promptly for the library.

oOoOo

Agata was busy explaining to reporters that it was not a coincidence that the surname of her head girl was the same as the escaped criminal Tulegen Nurtazin who was an ineffectual dark wizard who had been ineptly trying to kill Zhanargul since she was a baby and was scarcely a force to worry about.

"Gentlemen, the escape was, I am certain, engineered by a few people whom I have had to expel and sundry relatives thereof; that they might use Tulegen Nurtazin as a figurehead; they are obviously as childish now as they were when I expelled them. It's a tiresome thing; I suppose they think that now Nefrita Von Luytens has left Durmstrang that we are more vulnerable for lacking her implacable skill; they are wrong. My staff and I are more than equal to any dark wizards of such inutile ability. After all, Tulegen Nurtazin got himself used by a lich which facilitated the arrest of him in the first place; the lich having used him and moved on."

"Lich? A powerful undead?" one of the reporters looked scared "If THAT is still about, could it be the source of the inferiii?"

"Abaris did not consider creating inferii in such low numbers" said Agata "The lich is destroyed; it made a fatal error."

"What was that?"

"It irritated Nefrita Von Luytens" said Agata. "She took her exam classes on a field trip to destroy it to give them a little recreation before their exams; I gather the top students considered it an excellent opportunity. I fear however that Tulegen Nurtazin and his foolish half baked rescuers will not give this year's exam students as much of a challenge. Still, I understand that Zhanargul is planning to undertake a ritual sending to make her disapprobation plain so that's all good practise, isn't it? Now will you take coffee before you leave, or did you want to get on your way to catch the last stop press?"

oOoOo

Zhanargul had been doing her own library work; and proceeded to chant, drawing on the power of twenty three and using Finnish naming magic to provide her uncle with one or two embellishments to his appearance. If all went as planned – and Zhanargul did not see that it would not – Uncle Tulegen would be sporting a pig's nose and curly tail and the word 'eunuch' in boils on his forehead. The head had mentioned that she intended being so disparaging of the wizard and his new allies that he was almost bound to do something rash, which would enable them to more easily neutralise him; and Zhanargul thought she might as well add to his impotent rage and likelihood of attempting revenge. Besides, now she knew how to irritate him, she wanted to make it known to him that she disapproved; having spent years in if not constant fear at least in caution and nervousness. And though it might have been nice to have put some childish world like 'git' on his forehead, not only would he not understand, but it would not annoy him so much as being labelled a eunuch.

Zhanargul enjoyed herself; it was good to get some own back. She knew she must be careful not to permit own-back to drag her too far down the dark path but Jade always said that acknowledging one's nastier nature and occasionally indulging it in a relatively harmless way meant that one might satisfy it and so control it rather than letting it fester and break out in worse expressions of darkness. And Jade herself had acted in anger in the way she had killed Hedda Schremp for the torture of little Elfleda. This sending let Uncle Tulegen know that she COULD do it; and that it could have been a more fatal spell; it demonstrated her contempt for him that would hopefully bring him and all his cohorts down at the run, in a rash attack so all might be mopped up; and one had to be aware that when Agata said 'neutralise' she probably meant permanently. And better to have to kill then to have such people around to try to re-start the likes of Odessa.

Zhanargul was a gentle girl; but a pragmatic one.

oOoOo

With the tensions between them, Attila and Cacilia had enjoyed their quarrel; it had been at least somewhat cathartic. And Cacilia solemnly tacked up a piece of paper over her desk and marked it with a tally mark.

"What's that for?" asked Katarina.

"Just a way of keeping score" said Cacilia, glancing demurely at Attila.

Naturally – since this was to be the first of many such quarrels – the rumour went about the school that Professors Nagy and Von Freyer really disliked each other.

Those of the blood group who could feel, more than a little, of how untrue that was, just laughed; and Zoltan confided in Sigismund that he thought he would realise even if papa had not joined the blooded since it was only a quarrel about knowledge stuff, not about feelings or accusations. And they might call names but then so did any good friends.

And then Zoltan was summoned to the head's office.

He went with more curiosity than trepidation; he had a remarkably clean conscience, having been guilty of no more than inserting a page of 'Colonel Bogey' into the copies of the 'Tritch Tratch Polka' they were all practising and having been set and completed punishment by Volodya of polishing the big kettle drum.

"Zoltan, have you in any way communicated with your mother in such a wise as to give her the idea you would like to be withdrawn from school and sent to another school?" asked Agata.

Zoltan stared, aghast.

"No!" he cried "Oh PLEASE Madam Bacsó, do not make me leave! I have friends here and Sigismund and Papa and – oh I do not understand!"

Agata sighed.

"I understand you wrote a letter – I obviously do not know what was in it – to your mother taking issue with a letter she had written you; have you had any reply to that, or have you written any other letter?"

"No ma'am; I wrote that I found her apparent anger over the fact that I was settling in and making friends incomprehensible – I looked up how to spell it – as I should have thought any reasonable mother would be happy her son was getting on well. I asked if it was that she was angered that I was getting on well with my father, that seemed to me unfair as he is half my heritance; and asked her if she would care to explain why she had told me lies both about my father and Durmstrang and why she had concealed from me that my father is accounted a moderately famous man in his field and is much published. All I said that might be negative about the school was that I felt embarrassed not knowing that he was much published as we did not take any real periodicals at home."

Agata winced inwardly over how she would feel at receiving such a letter from Sigismund; hurt and accusing. She would feel a need to run to him to justify anything she had said that he could misconstrue. But Nora probably HAD been angry that her baby had not written letters stained with tears about how much he missed her; she was the sort that would have felt how nice it was that he needed his mama so much without pausing to reflect that this actually meant that the child was miserable. Nora was, in Agata's opinion, thoroughly selfish.

"Then I am quite justified, if it is your wish that you remain here, in going by German law" she said.

"I do wish" said Zoltan "What is German law?"

"That a boy belongs to his father unless his father proves inadequate in any way; and the father makes decisions regarding him" said Agata "That your FATHER can decide that you stay here. Your father is furious; but it is his wish that it is YOUR decision."

"I believe I don't have a mother any more" said Zoltan coldly "I am nothing but a weapon to use against papa; and I shall write to tell her that I am very angry that this should be the case. Professor Von Freyer said it might just be the way she looks at things; but if she looks at things in a way that she will play god with my life to score points then I am through with her. Might I see her letter?"

Agata passed it over.

It was an emotional sounding epistle declaring that her son had written in a way that showed him to be plainly unhappy and completely under his father's thumb; and that she wished to withdraw her son and send him to a smaller school like Prince Peak away from the brainwashing influence of his father.

Zoltan was furious.

"Please may I have leave to miss the next lesson to go and attack Gerhardt some more?" he asked.

"You may" said Agata. "And at least you know that this is NOT going to happen; your father and I will not permit it. I am going to write a formal letter to your mother telling her that I have questioned you and that you were distressed at the idea of being removed from your friends. I will add that I see no sign of brainwashing in you and that in a large busy school you see no more of your father than any of the other children; which really is true enough" she hesitated "Your father was talking divorce proceedings on grounds of acting out of the interests of the child of the marriage; I'm not sure how far he'll get with that."

Zoltan brightened.

"Then he can marry Professor Von Freyer" he said "I know she said I must try not to hate my mother, but oh! Professor Bacsó, it is hard not to when she is playing quaffle practise with my life!"

"I know" said Agata gently. "She has made you place her on a pedestal forgetting that when you were old enough to gain some independence you would see it was made of lies; and when someone falls from a pedestal one hates them more than if they had never been more than given the ordinary level of admiration one might give a parent or superior. Thus did I once place Prince Gerhardt on a pedestal, believing in Odessa and the Greater Good; believing that pure blood was better. And that pedestal was eroded by the actions of Odessa in Gerhardt's name and the lies tumbled it for me even before Jade Snape opened my unwilling eyes to its flaws. It hurts more than anything else to find that you have been failed so badly; and too you feel a fool for believing in the first place; and angry with the betrayer that they have made you foolish in your own eyes."

"Oh yes, Madam Bacsó, it is just like that!" cried Zoltan "And I feel angry for my papa; he admits he was not blameless but she has tried to hurt him more I think than he has ever hurt her and by using someone else he loves – her own son! And all the years I could have had a papa in the holidays she has denied us both for making me fear him! I will certainly write and tell her that I will not be a pawn in her sick and childish game and that I shall make request of you that I spend my holidays in the school rather than return to a house of – of deceit and manipulation."

"I'd write after you've let your temper have full rein if I were you" said Agata "Run along; it's going to snow soon and I want you back in not catching your death of cold."

All this and a visit to England starting tomorrow!

Well Nora Nagy must wait on the pleasure of the quidditch team; she should have a pithy reply now and then stew!

oOoOo

The team took the big pirate ship to emerge through the magical gate in the lake at Hogwarts School and the blooded on the team firmly ignored the amused contempt over their means of conveyance that had not been hidden by some of the younger Hogwarts blooded.

They were welcomed by Gorbrin Malfoy-Tobak in his capacity of Head Boy; and Agata was a trifle taken aback at a goblin head boy; but managed to shake his hand as Zhanargul Nurtazin shook David Fraser's. Then Gorbrin and Zhanargul were exchanging shakes; and Gorbrin looked at the 'Hauptfraulein' badge on her uniform.

"Snap" he said. Zhanargul grinned.

"Yes, this year we have had an election by the prefects even as you English do; and I was given the confidence of the school" she said. "I have also the honour to introduce the team Captain, Stiv Molotov."

Stiv hesitated only briefly before taking the hand of a goblin as the English boy bowed and advanced his hand.

"Permit me to introduce my team; Zlatko Asimov, Seeker;Harald Trollkettil, Keeper, Zlatka Asimova, Zhanagul Nurtazin and myself, Chasers; Gisela Schutzmann and Sigismundus de Brujin, Beaters."

The English head boy bowed to each of the boys, bowed and kissed the hands of the girls then introduced Meliandra Bulstrode as team Captain. She smiled.

"Sekunder Singh, Seeker; Gorbrin Malfoy-Tobak, Keeper; Sampta Patil, Jack Murray and Drusilla MacMillan, Chasers; self and Dunbar Finch, beaters" she said. .

Everyone shook hands all around and they retired inside for refreshments.

And if Harald Trollkettil had any objections to shaking hands with a goblin he only cringed slightly because both Zhanargul and Zlatko stood on a foot each having noticed his reluctance.

Nobody was going to accuse THEM of being uncivilised.

oOoOo

Harald Trollkettil gave himself some airs for being only in the fifth and was most put out to find that two of the all-house team were much younger than him to accommodate, as the oldest group of Hogwarts marauders managed to tell Zhanargul, a totally dire set of players in the upper years of one of the houses. Zhanargul and the Asimov twins decided not to rescue Harald from the hole he was digging for himself both over comments on the younger Hogwarts players and the comments on Gorbrin Mafoy's girlfriend and her choice. They left the Hogwarts crew to sort Harald out; and he was packed off to join classes with a boy surnamed Malfoy where doubtless he would be given a lesson in how an English gentleman knew exactly when to stop being one.

Zlatka, Zlatko, Gisela and Sigismundus were happier in the class they joined in with in the Lower Sixth; the twins and Gisela being blooded quickly gravitated to the Belle Marauders and Sigismundus struck up something of a friendship with Sita Patil, whose twin was on the team, being the better of the two at quidditch as Sita freely admitted.

And in the upper sixth Zhanargul and Stiv found Gorbrin and friends quite convivial too. One of the lessons was DADA and the visitors were pleased to see how this compared with their own lessons in Dark Arts in Durmstrang. The English Professor Remus Lupin was covering inferii and revising dementors; and was delighted that both visitors could manage corporeal patronuses. They touched on other undead like Vampires and liches; and Zhanargul asked if she and Stiv might recount their first hand experiences of the previous year. Remus was delighted and they sidetracked cheerfully onto the lich Abaris and his magical life-sucking knife whom the older Durmstrang Marauders and dark arts class had helped Jade to destroy once they had enough clues to use Zlatka's skills of divination allied with a gizmo invented by Gorbrin's friend Albert MacMillan in his goblin metal-crafting classes, whom they credited.

Remus set his normal students nine inches on the undead with reference to the mindless and aware forms and not neglecting reference to the unnatural forms of Voldemort; and as they had a few minutes in hand granted the request of Ming Chang that they be allowed to teach the visitors 'There's a Zombie in my Attic'; on condition there were no more than five verses sung.

The idea of making comic songs about something that was really rather terrible was a bit of a revelation to the Durmstrangers who had thought they had shown quite English nonchalance and insouciance over their own inferii; and they confided the experience to the English with as much of an offhand manner as they might manage, including a complaint about the bad behaviour of so many cowardly adult spectators.

"It does rather bring home why Harry Potter and friends had to lead the fight against Voldemort" said Zhanargul.

oOoOo

Zlatka and Zlatko spent large portions of the night being shown some of the secret passages by the Belle Marauders; Zlatka was housed in Gryffindor Tower as was Zlatko; Sigismundus and Gisela were in Hufflepuff. The Asimov twins might, after all, draw on the blood group to offset tiredness in the morning, which was only fair. And they had a great time in the passages that followed the chimneys; and the Belle Marauders invited them into the marauding room in case they ever needed a refuge that was under fidelius charm outside their own school's marauding room.

Zhanargul had a peaceful night sharing with the four upper sixth Gryffindor girls who were all happy to be friendly; and Stiv found himself in with the three remaining Slytherin boys, Gorbrin, Wilfrid Crabbe and Erasmus Bobbin. He had no trouble.

Harald apparently managed to offend the members of the dormitory he was in after making a fuss that he was sharing a room with a goblin; and Zhanargul decided not to even notice. The English boys had, it seemed, been remarkably tolerant and he seemed unjinxed.

oOoOo

Breakfast was early to make use of as much of the light as possible if a long match ensued; and then the game was under way.

Durmstrang were first to get into a scoring position; Zlatka, Zhanargul and Stiv worked very well together, and Stiv prepared to shoot.

He was NOT prepared for Gorbrin to stand up on his broom to field the quaffle and hurl it downfield towards Jack Murray. This was unexpected; but how English to be unexpected! Harald was a good keeper but no genius; and the Hogwarts team confused him with a lot of back-passing at which they seemed adept.

The Durmstrang team were stronger in offence; the Hogwarts team were strong in defence, with a strong and accurate beater – whose occasional cry of 'howzat?' as she hit the bludger was confusing– and the Malfoy boy's broomnastics. He hung by the hands and swung round in a circle to extend far enough to kick the quaffle away then let go of the broom in mid swing to do some kind of twisting move in order to bring himself back to a point where he might straddle the broom again. It was disconcerting for the chasers until they began to settle down to some serious scoring once they had got the measure of Gorbrin's strange tactics and tried to position themselves to catch the quaffle as he knocked it away to score as he was regaining equilibrium; it took some precise timing and throwing and did not always come off, but Zlatka particularly was adept at guessing where the quaffle was going to go; which she later explained as shutting her eyes and letting instinct take over; or as her twin said, another practical use of divination.

Both Zlatko and his counterpart had tried the Wronski Feint to no avail; both had avoided carefully aimed bludgers from opposing beaters. Zlatko tried the tactic Jade had shown him of trying to make the English beaters take each other out by flying between them; but his English blood sister there was wise to that tactic and she knocked her own bludger with a flick of the wrist that curled it after Zlatko and rocked the tail of his broom.

The Hogwarts seeker too was not about to be caught out by a tactic Zlatko had used the previous year when he had flown right through the scoring ring and had the satisfaction of seeing his opposite number try to follow and stick; Sekunder was even skinnier than Zlatko anyway as well as being nobody's fool.

The snitch itself was the undoing of both seekers; neither noticed the other turn sharply as it swooped and fluttered between them.

The crash as they impacted head to head could almost be felt by the rest of the team and the crowd; and there was a collective groan of sympathy.

The blood group, once ascertaining that there was no real hurt to Zlatko, refrained from using their connection to bring him back to consciousness; it would not have been fair.

And Madam Pomfrey, the Hogwarts school nurse, insisted that both be taken off.

"Play until fail of light and then declare the score to be as it stands or see if they'll play on tomorrow?" asked Meliandra to Stiv.

"None of us can afford two exhausting days playing on the trot if we can avoid it; we'll make declaration when light is called" decided Stiv. "It might have been fun to play on if they were ready tomorrow; but it IS only a game and we DO have our exam subjects to think of."

"Agreed" said Meliandra.

oOoOo

In the event, it was the Durmstrang team who was ahead on points at close of play; and the Hogwarts spectators cheered them politely, with real warmth for the good play.

It had been a long time since Durmstrang had won any kind of match, quidditch, duelling or triwizard, over Hogwarts; and Zhanargul, thanking the English school for its hospitality over supper mentioned this and said that in her opinion the result was down to Jade Snape who had taught Durmstrangers how to co-operate as a team and indeed as a school rather than compete; because the whole ethos of years of interference from Odessa had eaten away at morale and moral judgement too.

"We have a new era ahead of us" she said "Where our schools may compete in a friendly fashion, the battles hard fought but without real malice. And we have this too to thank the English for; thank you. We'll be back another time to see if we can't do it again!"

She was cheered.

The Durmstrangers stayed over one more night and left early next morning after breakfast to return to their own lessons, full of honour and pride that they were the first team to beat Hogwarts in a very long time!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The angry reaction of Tulegen Nurtazin would have gone entirely unnoticed had not the Eulenspiegel twins been being particularly vigilant with their older fellow Marauders out of the country.

"Your uncle DID have a hissy fit" gigged Xanthippe. She was leaning on Zlatko's knee, seated beside him while Xanthe perched on his knee after their morning run and spell practice.

"Nothing, I take it, you couldn't handle" said Zhanargul.

"We didn't have to" grinned Xanthe "Seems he thought that if the minor fey of the wild hunt he sent last time couldn't get through the barrier, a whacking great efreet might; we happened to be looking out when it bounced, clear out of fey space for a second or so before it few apart it hit so hard. Reckon it's going to be well pissed with him when it re-forms."

"Well if we don't get him, it yet might" said Zhanargul. "Zlatko are you actually such an arrogant bastard that you plan to take on BOTH Eulenspiegels?

"Can't have one without the other" said Zlatko laconically. "Besides it saves me trouble trying to remember which is which."

He got well poked; trying to jinx Zlatko was rather futile.

"Look out Durmstrang after they breed; twins and nothing but twins!" grinned Gisela.

"Alas, it don't work that way" mourned Zlatko "We're the wrong way round."

"Run that by me again and try not to sound insulting" warned Xanthippe.

"I talked to the Belle Marauders about it; and by the way, I think we ought to have a proper Marauder name and the Twin Marauders seems appropriate" said Zlatko.

"Yes; very nice. Get to the point or we'll scrag you" said Xanthippe.

"SO well named" murmured Zlatko, dodging a poke and almost precipitating Xanthe off his lap and so getting poked by her instead. "Well the English Marauders understand the work muggles have done on heritance; and fraternal twins are because more than one egg is dropped and fertilised – like Zlatka and me, because obviously different sex twins MUST be fraternal twins. Though equally obviously they need not be different sexes; but non identical twins of the same sex" he added.

"He's being pedantic" said Xanthe

"And pompous" said Xanthippe.

"I'm trying to give you a full explanation you prunes" said Zlatko. "There's a familial predisposition to drop more than one egg but it runs by the female line – as is also fairly obvious. Males don't have eggs to drop. Identical twins on the other hand are caused by something in the sperm that makes a single egg divide and make two identical ones; and they actually share one sac within the womb, which is how come they tend to be awful close. Any twins are closer than any other kind of sibling – we've heard each other's heartbeat since we could hear of course. But not been joined by one umbilicus. And the tendency to do THAT passes in the male line. Which being so, the girls and I have no greater chance of having twins than any other person in the general populace; though whether it carries so our children will have an increased chance I'm not sure. I don't know enough about this genetics business."

"Well that's a relief anyway" said Zlatka rudely "Not having to worry about multiples of little Owl Glasses."

The younger twins both stuck out their tongues at her.

Naturally with a name for the oldest marauders the younger groups clamoured for the same honour; and Kjell, Efleda, Sofie and Leva came up with being the Jade Fag Marauders because they had fagged for Jade; and Beremud said that being the Musical Marauders was fairly obvious for their lot, which it was.

They had another mug of pumpkin juice to celebrate.

oOoOo

The general consensus amongst the oldest of the blood group concerning Tulegen Nurtazin and his forces was that they were actually unlikely to be any trouble – at least yet. Zhanargul summed up.

"If, as we surmise, he was rescued by some combination of Erzebet Czerny and her family, all of whom hate Durmstrang even more since her brat of a cousin got kicked out, Calvina Leckkessel – who actually is too selfish, I think to be involved – Klaas de Witt and Heinrich Nachtigall and his father we have an awful lot of egos trying to co-operate" said Zhanargul. "My uncle wants rulership; he's not exactly modest. Czerny seemed to think the world owed her everything; and as her cousin was the same I don't suppose her family is much different. And by the by, Attila, you should be aware that the bratling late of the first will doubtless see YOU as the villain for deliberately fooling him by concealing that Zoltan was your son because you wanted to slight him; if he runs true to the same form as Erzebet. It's a good job you don't have younger ones at home; though you might want to write and warn your wife that as you stopped the Czerny boy bullying your son she might want to be on her guard over that family. After all, she is claiming to have his interests at heart, isn't she?"

"Does everyone know my family business?" said Attila harshly.

"Those of us who are blooded pick up on emotions, hear a few things and make logical surmise" shrugged Zhanargul. "And besides I was waiting with a message for the head when you were expressing your opinion loud enough for them to hear you in England."

"Oh" said Attila.

"I guess you were about to add, returning to our dark wizards, that Nachtigall liked to be the leader" said Cacilia "And though de Witt was in the habit of following him, Czerny has got out of that habit; and may wish to see the borders of the German co-prosperity sphere move east with herself as queen to Nurtazin's king?"

"Something along those lines" said Zhanargul. "My uncle would leap as happily to the opportunity to rule say Hungary as to rule Kazakhstan; though he'd want to have a chance to humiliate my father at some point I think. And he wants me dead now for personal reasons as well as ambition. Agata did her best to disparage the group, and his best shot was the efreet."

"I disagree" said Zlatko suddenly "I think the efreet was his personal reaction of anger, Zhanni. I think they almost have to commit some atrocity to prove they are not to be discounted the way Agata discounted them; to try to make her look foolish. But I'm not sure it would be in an attack on Durmstrang. It's more likely to be an attack on something that will cause us some distress; something we consider important. Like the council, the reformed ministry, Jade's school or goblins in general."

"Nachtigall cannot attack Jade's school and nor can de Witt" said Cacilia "Nor take part in planning that; when Severus took the curse off them he left enough of it in there with a clause in that would make it return if they attacked Jade."

"Then they'll attack someone that will hurt Jade" said Zhanargul.

"They'll attack the goblins in Munich" said Zlatko "Where we all went while they were still at school to heal the black goblin pox."

"He's probably right" said Zlatka "There, or the Kobboldstrasse in Berlin; places with large concentrations of goblins that are public enough to cause it to be newsworthy. And if they dress it up as punishing the contumely of goblins and being freedom fighters against the gobbo lovers of the new order they might get supporters from those who disapprove of what we're doing; which I'm afraid will be a large number of the brainless nurds who haven't got a clue about social realities."

"So what do we do?" asked Elfleda "Those goblins won't stand a chance against those nasty types."

"We get Lazlo, who's still freelancing, and Jaromir to go to each of those places and pulse us when the attack comes" said Cacilia. "And I say, let's ask Jade NOT to be involved unless we really need her; because they could do with being taught that she's not the only person who can whip their asses."

"I should like to have the opportunity to let Nachtigall know what I think of him; AND that Czerny bitch who was bullying Sigismund" said Attila grimy.

"I wonder who is nominally in control though?" said Zlatko "Like Zhanni says, it's an interesting dance of egos. And I wonder if they bust out Uncle Tulegen because Jade was impressed enough about his demonology to put up the exclusion line against fey; and thought he might be strong enough to lead them?"

"A point, twin" said Zlatka "Then I bet it was Czerny's idea. And who else is involved we can't actually be certain. Should I find Uncle Tootles again and we just go and attack them?"

Zhanargul hesitated.

"I don't much like to go to another person's stronghold" she said.

"I could go" squeaked Tildi "Elf invisibility is very good; I could see who is there!"

"I don't like to…."said Clovis

"Nachtigall was always unkind to elves; and so was the Czerny girl! I should like to see them caught out!" Tildi folded her little arms firmly.

"It's not like she isn't our sister and we can't heave her out" said Takeo. "You are very brave, Tildi!"

oOoOo

Albert Macmillan had made a second scrolling globe for the use of the Durmstrang marauders and associates; and Zlatka had been very impressed by his quiet competence. She hoped to get to know Albert better!

She concentrated on the location of the evil wizard; and chuckled.

"He's back in his old hide out where we found him before; and I bet he's sore that we stripped it of books and anything interesting!" she said.

"And that he doesn't have any elves because of me having used the law to strip blood bond from him" said Zhanargul, who had left the bereaved elf in her parents' palace.

Tildi nodded, clicked her fingers, and vanished.

oOoOo

Clovis was pacing within minutes; and it was a good ten of them before Tildi returned. She was well kissed by her husband before she might make her report.

"The Czerny girl is there with her older brother and parents and some relatives, I think; and the two Nachtigalls, but not de Witt. And Fraulein Leckkessel also is not there" she reported. "There are others; I think some are friends of Nachtigall senior and some are friends of the Czerny family. There is about two dozen people" she added. "And Nurtazin is wearing a cloak with a very deep hood and a velvet mask and they call him 'master' with deep respect. He has a genie as a servant but I bet it's a different one to the fey he sent here" she giggled.

"And they'd have less respect if they could see the pig's snout and the zits on his forehead" chuckled Zhanargul. "Well, well! A deep hood and velvet mask; full of mystique I suppose, but empty of intelligence!"

"Did you catch any plans?" asked Attila.

"They was too busy arguing; Nachtigall made challenge of Nurtazin's leadership as not being German – this is the older Nachtigall – and got thrown across the room and made to beg pardon under the cruciatus curse" said Tildi.

"He's actually fairly tough then" said Zhanargul.

"And pissed that Abaris made him shit bricks" said Clovis "And wanting to forget that in being hard at people. Any one of us can be the focus; even when he isn't as fuddled as he was last time we whacked him. Question is, do we take them out before they do anything and just stop them dead or wait and stop them publicly when they attack?"

"The Hogwarts crowd made Voldemort come to them; then Jade manipulated Gerhardt into being where she wanted him to be" said Xanthe.

"Both of which had good reason" said Zlatko "Because they had to wait and collect all the horcruces; and too Voldemort's troops were scattered. As were Gerhardt's. Uncle Tootles – I like that soubriquet – hasn't had time to collect THAT many troops."

"Would it not be better to take them out in a public place and make a public display of it as a sort of newspaper across the nose to dark wizards and a BAD puppy thing?" said Xanthippe.

"That is a point" said Clovis.

"And IS it going to be news?" squeaked Tildi "If it's only goblins involved? Might not they then become martyrs for the backward types that would like to oppress goblins?"

"She's so right" said Beremud. "Besides, taking them out quietly really does fulfil what Madam Bacsó said, that they are nothing. If they're dead they can't then start trouble and Herr Nagy doesn't have to start writing to his wife who might join with them just because she has a few erumpants loose in her top paddock and thinks that the enemy of her enemy is her friend because she's a gormless moo. Begging your pardon Zoltan."

"Oh no need; she IS a gormless moo" said Zoltan gloomily "And she has forfeited the right for me to take up cudgels on her behalf. I'm in with the stamp all over them before they can grow too many-headed and mutable vote."

"Not that we were inviting you small ones along" said Zhanargul "Even the Hogwarts crew theoretically banned those under fifteen and de facto those below the third. Except Jade and her sister Lydia but I guess they're a law unto themselves."

"Worth a try" said Lindhard.

"We can support" said Beryx.

"I will go but only to hold defensive chants and to heal" said Volodya "I will not fight."

"Right, we may as well get ready and go right now then" said Attila "I think that taking them out and keeping their profile low is far better than letting them get bumptious enough to actually try anything. No time like the present."

"Ten minutes for loo break and to collect pumpkin juice in case we need blood sugar or fluid" said Zhanargul "We all know the layout. I'll take my uncle; my three fags to back me. We'll have Lazlo and Jaromir in to back us too. Jaromir to take down Czerny, Attila, Nachtigall senior, Cacilia you take Nachtigall and the rest pick targets as seem good, Kjell, you stick with the Eulenspiegels and be a spare marauder and message runner for them. We HAVE to assume that there may be more troops in a place Tildi did not look that the Hungarians mustered."

"Tildi will – I will go and look better" squeaked Tildi and vanished.

She was back in a shorter time this time.

"They have as many others who have been arriving by apportation" she squeaked "They are mustering. Some of them have elves. Elf magic is very powerful; they are bound to protect their masters. I will borrow all the free elves I know just to deal with the elveses."

She started sending pulses and shortly a motley crew of adult free elves started arriving who were blood kin.

Jaromir and Lazlo also arrived; and they were ready.

"Were we taking Agata?" asked Attila suddenly.

"No, we were going to let Sigismund bravely explain to her what we were doing" said Zlatko. "FAR better than asking permission; she might say no."

"Thanks" said Sigismund.

"Don't mention it" said Zlatko.

And then they were apparating smoothly.

There were twenty of them in the blood group as well as the elves; they faced more than twice their own numbers. But they were also confident in being adept at holding up solid defences. The younger ones were not supposed to be active participants, but nobody actually believed that this stricture would hold for long. With them and Volodya not really counted against numbers the odds were actually closer to three to one; but the Durmstrang group fought as one and supported each other.

And Clovis was soon using the energy sword spell Draco had invented to march through the forces of Tulegen Nurtazin cutting them down; and a startled Takeo copying him that he might have a samurai sword.

The nucleus group of the new supremacist organisation was horrified; they were expecting more to come in, but not implacable young witches and wizards who had come to kill them. It was understood that arrest was not an option; that these enemies were to be eliminated once and for all lest they get out of Nurmengard again. And most were plying the blasting curse or the severing charm across the jugular; and the four Jade Fag Marauders managed to combine wand work on one, that overcame most defences, and move on. Zhanargul blasted implacably towards her uncle who ordered the genie to attack her. Zhanargul electrocuted it contemptuously and had the pleasure of seeing her uncle's shoulders crumple in both horror and the back wash of the collapse of the thrall in which he held the creature.

And yet it seemed that they could not win; it was an illusion. They were doomed.

It was the Eulenspiegel twins whose patronuses burst forth at the dementors Heinrich Nachtigall had summoned; and the fat German boy howled in despair as he lost control of them. The Eulenspiegels menaced him with them briefly before electrocuting them; they REALLY did not like the youth. And Axel Von Rabe moved in too.

"I have prior claim on this one; I was his fag" he said grimly.

The Eulenspiegels looked briefly startled; he WAS only a fourth year after all; but it was a right to be ceded and they stepped back. Axel was holding a pair of duelling swords and passed one hilt first to Nachtigall.

"As your family is that of gentlemen even though you are not" he said.

Nachtigall sneered.

"You snotty little brat! I'll cut bits off you slowly until you beg; you are no match to me!" he said.

Axel did not waste time on words. He had been learning fencing at home hoping for just this opportunity; the reason he had brought swords along. And he was lithe and fit; and running every morning had made him into whipcord. Nachtigall thought his physical bulk could intimidate and oppress, and tried to come forward to use his strength of blow on the boy; but Axel's easy parrying and deft manoeuvring kept him out of the way of being beaten down. And Nachtigall, lazy and flabby, was quickly blowing. He reached for his wand with his left hand.

"If you make it magical I will respond in kind" said Axel, forcing a cry from his opponent for grazing his arm with the wand.

"You wish! _Avada Kedavra!_"

Lazily, without even troubling to get his wand out, Axel made a movement with his sword like a circular parry only larger; and within it was a mirror.

And the green flash rebounded on Nachtigall who fell dead with a look of foolish surprise on his pasty face.

And then the numbers of the enemy were reducing, were down to manageable levels; even though Volodya had to chant rapidly to place Takeo's entrails back after the boy had been subject to the entrail expelling curse; and a number of people had taken wounds from some specie of cutting spell.

The cruciatus curse and the killing curse had been most notable as spells of the opposition; the Durmstrang crew all now sported the zig-zag scar from sharing with each other; though with a large group – they involved those of their group who were teaching for Jade as well as the juniors to share THAT out – it was unlikely to be permanent. It might be good for the school's cachet however if anyone spotted it before it faded, as crossed Cacilia's mind!

They went through the entire castle to make sure nobody remained; and Tildi sent all the elves to England and ordered all those who were freed by line death by this carnage to present themselves to Mr Lucius Malfoy and ask for employment somewhere.

She thanked Kreacher, Polly, Dobby and Beloc for their aid – these being the ones she had called upon – and they returned to their respective homes. The rest of them apparated smoothly back to Durmstrang where a worried and not a little angry Agata Bacsó was waiting.

Volodya having patched up the worst wounds anyone had taken, they did not look the worse for wear; and Zhanargul had only minimal burns from her encounter with her uncle after she had blasted the mask from his face just because it would disconcert him. She had needed to draw on power to defeat him in a colourful and vitriolic duel; and the seven musical Marauders had been happy to boost her. They looked smugly innocent as Agata stared around at her battling cohorts. And realised that even Wencelada Fernandez looked quietly competent; the child who had never expected to live to adulthood. Yes, she would have good reason to fight to support Jade Snape's ideals. And those third years! Agata shook her head.

"Well!" she said "I can scarcely tick off the naughty adults in front of the naughty children!"

"What had you rather, Agata?" said Attila "They had some fifty already flocking to the banner – mostly Hungarians. They are dead but not as martyrs to a cause of saving humans from vicious goblins, nor is it only after they have committed some act to be noticed to negate your despite of their abilities. Durmstrang defends; it has been said before. We got our defence in before the attack. You KNOW that any who would break a proven dark wizard out of Nurmengard are going to be trouble."

"We did what had to be done" said gentle Volodya "I was glad not to have to be one to fight; but to prevent worse happening I think I should have done had we been low on numbers. They were NOT expecting us."

"The advantage of surprise offset their numbers" said Takeo.

"When the scar started appearing on the little ones….flaring again….." Agata was agitated.

"And had any combined in it we might have needed to borrow the English to bounce it" said Cacilia. "We will not mention it; and if any else do we just shrug and murmur that Durmstrang defends and not go into detail. Now we can sleep at nights without wondering what they might come up with that's more inventive than Inferii; and by the way, thanks for disparaging them sufficiently that they actually were mustering for a big attack, we think on the goblins of Munich. If they DID do that, could we guarantee there would be no innocent deaths? We could not. We had no choice."

"Another time I wish you would let me know ahead of time" said Agata waspishly. "And not let these poor babes be your heralds!"

The poor babes beamed happily.

They had done what they might to pacify the head such that at least she was ready to listen to explanation; and because they had acquired zig-zag scars out of it they felt they really had been a part of fighting dark wizards; and the headaches well worth it!

oOoOo

Zoltan got some hard stares from his dormitory mates.

"That's a scar like Herr Potter's" said Felicks accusingly.

Zoltan shrugged.

"I AM a marauder" he said "Marauders serve as they can; don't ask me questions I'm not allowed to answer."

"I don't think the head would like big marauders making first years bounce the killing curse" said Herman.

"It's not a question of make; and the head knows all about it" said Zoltan "And I already had her unvarnished opinion of first and second years being even peripherally involved so don't anyone else start."

He was gazed on with the wary admiration bestowed on a lawless and heroic type like a Marauder.

Zoltan thought the kids in his dormitory were nice kids; but it would be nice to be with the other marauders. He was working hard for his remove, by the simple expedient of reading the notes of the older ones and doing their class essays that he planned to hand in just after the main exams were over in June to see if he might not go with them into the third next year. His own class essays were so easy after all that he always finished them quickly; and there were no subjects he dropped below an 'E' on, though he had received a rather acid comment from his father that if he must produce ZH level answers to first year questions could he please try to write them legibly.

It had been a hastily scrawled essay because he had got too interested in a second year potion essay and he had forgotten that assimilative correlation had been something he had come across when reading for pleasure backing up what he had learned in eavesdropping.

oOoOo

The stares Zoltan had received were duplicated by the body of the school first thing; and the phrases 'Durmstrang defends' and 'Marauder business' and 'Bound by oath not to discuss it' were variously murmured.

The rumour that went around was that the school had been attacked by dark wizards and dark creatures and the marauders and top chanters had been heaved out of bed to deal with them.

It was as good a rumour as any.

oOoOo

Zhanargul wrote a full and comprehensive report for her father; the only reason he had never killed Tulegen was because he knew that it would have been against their dead father's wishes for his sons to fight; and because it went against the grain to kill a brother. Zhanargul respected how he felt; she however had no such compunction about dealing with a menace who was about to threaten the whole of Europe if he had his way. Her father would back her; he had already given Tulegen many second chances, and had had him confined to be out of the way of others. If that was not so secure a prison as he had believed, placing fifty conspirators in it just gave fifty conspirators an easily defended stronghold. One did not remain prince in a somewhat frontier princedom without being practical.

It was moreover polite to let her father know that there were scenes of carnage in the mountain fortress of Tulegen Nurtazin; especially if anyone came looking for a relative who was decidedly dead there. Isultan Nurtazin could deny having had anything to do with it but admit to a report of dark wizards being taken out as they gathered for violent intent. Or he could, if he so wished, announce that his wicked brother had collected a force to attack the peaceful principality and they had been opposed by his daughter and her friends who had uncovered the plot. Which course of action Zhanargul suggested; if the story was reported outside Kazakhstan it made the plotters even less likely to be seen as freedom fighters if it was all about greed and conquest; and also cast Zhanargul as powerful enough to oppose such without help from her father, to secure the support of any who wavered over her being only a witch not a wizard.

And to have their plots uncovered and defeated by school children really DID make them look stupid.

oOoOo

There were a few nightmares following the fight; as was scarcely surprising, for certainly of the four youngest to attend it was the first time they had seen death, let alone violent death that they had helped to bring about. And even knowing that the killing of these unpleasant people would probably save the lives of hundreds of others in the long term did not make it any easier to contemplate. But part of the creed of the marauders was that some must give up their childhood for the ideal of making sure that others would not have their childhood stolen from them; and as Leva said soberly it might one day mean that goblins actually one day got a proper childhood instead of looking from pinched hungry faces with adult eyes from the age of about six. Fyra and Alrik had been far more knowing and cynical than any of them; and teaching them to play and have fun without staring fearfully at humans had been one of the duties Jade's fags had taken on themselves. And it was good to know that the two goblin children were now part of the newest marauder aspirants in Prince Peak, for Fyra wrote, mostly to Elfleda, fairly regular letters even if Alrik – in common, said Elfleda, with all males – only managed the odd brief scrawl. Kjell had grinned and refused to rise; he never wrote letters either if he did not have to, which was mostly a case of scrounging pocket money from parents.

Attila had another fight on his hands, in the matter of Anwalten; Nora contested his suit for divorce on the grounds that she was an unfit mother for trifling with her son's education. It was going to drag on for years. He proceeded to pick a fight with Cacilia over sartorial taste and they had a very satisfying shouting match involving some complex transfigurations of each other's clothing into ever sillier garb.

They fell about laughing by the end of it and Attila growled that the scarf she had been wearing did nothing for her complexion.

"I know" said Cacilia "But it was a gift to me from one of the children who used to be my fag; so what am I supposed to do?"

"Well put that way….. you could massage the colour a little" he said.

She brightened.

"Now THAT's a good idea; and if Diliana notices, I'll just tell her I wanted to be able to wear it with a gown it was so close in colour to that it clashed and I was disappointed" she said.

"Diliana Zhikova? She won't notice" said Attila.

Cacilia had to admit that he was probably right; so long as it was still more or less pink, she might readily change it quite a lot from the excruciatingly violent pink that Diliana had picked.

"It's going to be years before I can marry you" he said abruptly.

"When we first discussed it, it was going to be never that I got to marry you" said Cacilia. "I said then and I'll repeat myself; if we are to be together seriously, then I'll cheerfully live with you. Unlike Agata I can get away with it; I'm in a less vulnerable position and I have a family that will back me and has the clout to do so. I can give any critics the fig and get away with it."

"I am beginning to be more and more sure that I would like to spend my life with you; let us wait until Yule and see how things are then" he said.

She nodded.

"I might then let you catch me under the mistletoe" she said demurely.

oOoOo

The visit of the governors seemed to be taking a particular interest in Attila Nagy.

Eduard Von Frettchen spoke to Agata.

"The governors have received a complaint that your transfigurations professor is a violent man who uses fear of his temper to brainwash his students. I'd like your view."

"Heh, from Nora Nagy or her Anwalten was it?" said Agata "That woman is so poisonous! She doesn't care how she hurts her son providing she can score over her husband. This is a personal matter, Eduard; nothing to do with concern for the children. You can – indeed you SHOULD – legilimens both Attila and Zoltan – his son – over this. It's upsetting the child no end, having been betrayed by his own mother."

Von Frettchen respected the views of Agata Bacsó; and did as she suggested, telling the child that the head, in loco parentis, had given permission for his own protection.

Zoltan had nothing to hide; he and the other Musical Marauders were still racking their brains over how to exploit a visit of the governors that might involve something a little more exciting than involving farting. Von Frettchen read of the boy's feelings of betrayal and patted him kindly on the shoulder and bade him be patient.

"At least you are sure one of your parents loves you; it is more than those who are born only because an heir is required who are shuffled off onto servants and nurses" he said. "Like my unfortunate – and I fear inadequate – nephew who was alternately spoiled and ignored by his silly mother and virtually forgotten by my fool of a brother. Families are not the people we choose; I love my brother but I am alive to his faults. Perhaps you will learn to be tolerant of your mother's faults and just accept that she seems rather shallow."

"Professor Von Freyer said much the same" said Zoltan "I AM trying. But I wrote to her that she might consider herself not to have a son until she was prepared to apologise. It's in her hands. Why please are you involved?"

"Oh, governors have to take care of the interests of the staff of their schools" said Von Frettchen; and if Zoltan did not entirely believe him, it was all he was prepared to say.

The governors as a whole asked questions about Attila Nagy; and proceeded to discuss him, with Agata present.

The view they had got from the pupils had varied between those who found his shouting fearsome and those who enjoyed spirited debate; and those in between who considered him a good teacher if a little impatient with the terminally dim.

There were plenty of teachers who were impatient with the terminally dim without it being something to consider abnormally violent; and none of the pupils had complained of painful spells as punishment nor of having hands laid on them; several small boys had admitted to having had six whacks last year for blowing up the doors a little bit and a preferable punishment to the awful alternative offered to them, which had been copying music.

That could hardly then be counted as excessive physical punishment.

They had not actually asked Zoltan; who had in any case forgotten the single blow for fighting he and Czerny had received near the beginning of term.

The next most violent thing Herr Nagy had done had been to throw a balled up sheet of paper at Zlatko for having been drawing a rather wicked caricature on the said sheet of paper of Herr Nagy and another teacher; and when asked if he would show it to the Governors said in a shocked voice that he had burned it as it had made Herr Nagy sufficiently waxy that he had obviously been genuinely offended by it.

It had been before Zlatko had realised that Attila was sweet on Cacilia and he had drawn him in hot pursuit of Madam McGonagall declaring that as her animagus form was cat he had always liked a nice pussy; which he had NO intention of admitting to governors, merely stating, rather hurt, that as he had done the lines for the rudeness, dragging it up was a bit unfair to him as Professor Nagy had since forgiven it.

The governors left with Eduard Von Frettchen explaining that he had reason to believe that this was a piece of mischief making.

It would not be for some twelve hours that their feet started playing polka music as they walked; the musical marauders had decided to live up to their marauder name and had done serious library work and almost split their tongues in half chanting up the delayed action.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Attila was furious.

He burst in on Cacilia.

"That bloody woman!" he yelled "That BLOODY woman to try to make trouble for me with the governors!"

He grabbed her and jerked her hard into his arms.

Cacilia did a smooth elf style apportation to the other side of the room.

"Attila I am NOT going to be the punching bag for your anger; nor let you take out your frustration in sex, which will be rough enough for you to regret and for me to reject your suit" she said coldly "Pull yourself together; if you must find someone to fight, do as your son does and go after Gerhardt the rocky snowman. I'll not fight you this way; I want my first sexual experience to be passionate in a loving way, not half filled with hate for someone else."

Attila stared; and threw himself on his knees before her.

"I am sorry" he said "I – it was not in hate, nor in a desire to fight within a sexual release; I wanted the comfort of your arms. I – I did not mean to make it threatening."

She put her arms about him and held him to her; and he sobbed into her breast. She stroked his hair.

When the storm of sobbing was over she raised him and led him to a chair; and made coffee.

"I am sorry I misinterpreted your intent" she said softly "I was taken aback by the anger in your eyes allied to the contrary message of your embrace."

He ran a hand through his hair.

"Maybe deep down I wanted to fight you first; I don't really know" he said "It was not conscious; I only knew I wanted to kiss you to get the foul taste of that bitch's machinations out of my mouth. And I want you to accept me, faults and all. I have a hasty temper; and I find comfort in sex; and I'm not very good with words."

"If it will then help you, Attila, you may come to my bed; though I HAD thought you were going to give me lessons stage by stage until I was ready to take an exam in pleasing you" said Cacilia.

"Ah!" he gasped "And a more ultimately pleasurable thing to do than give way to my usual foolish impatience my dear!"

"I thought it might be fun" said Cacilia. "Perhaps starting with a viva voce about how much I do know that then needs a lecture and perhaps some starting demonstrations to correct my lack of knowledge or build on what I do know."

"What actually in a classroom?" Attila was intrigued and shocked.

She gave a gurgle of mirth.

"Why not? And the risk of being caught in flagrante delicto too, Herr Professor."

"Cacilia! You certainly know how to take my mind of my anger and troubles!" he declared. "When… when should we start your lessons?"

"Were we not going to wait until Yule?" she teased.

"Cacilia, dwelling on it may be pleasant but I need something more positive at the moment; what if she gets me sacked, and Zoltan dragged back to her custody and firmly provided with some dull tutor?"

"Attila, if you think for one moment that Agata will stand still for that, you've forgotten what a strong minded woman she is. And Jade will arrange you a professorship in some school or other; she isn't opening more only for lack of staff, there'll be a place if you get driven out by any means. As to Zoltan, can you really see his brother and friends permitting him to stay in durance vile? They'd use the elf style apportation and kidnap him; and likely install him in Jade's school which is the LAST place she'd look for him; or you and he might flee to England where the child's wishes about which if either parent rears him is what is taken into account. Now then! It WILL work out all right even if it takes until he is grown up and decides to sue her himself; besides, I'm looking after both of you so stop shaking like Katti Krächzen hitting 'e' above high 'c'

"Thank you, rude girl, I haven't got as much flab to shake as she has" said Attila. "You are right; she has me so completely on a string over Zoltan that I twitch to her command."

"I shan't tell you to stop it; that's impossible" said Cacilia "But every time she twitches your strings, remember that you can twitch back; and by locking down so you don't show any movement to HER is a form of twitching back. Pity she would not let Zoltan have any friends or he might write bright and happy letters to them about how much he's enjoying school. Still, we might let a reporter from a better quality paper come and report on the concert the kids are putting together and let them interview our two true musicians – so he may declare in the press how much he's enjoying school. I'll talk to him about it and then pacify Volodya so he doesn't try to kill anyone as intrusive as a reporter."

"That's a laugh; Volodya doesn't even duel."

"No; but you haven't seen him in defence of his music or his musical babes. I wager he COULD happily murder anyone who was interfering with their muse. I had to stop him going off to strangle Nora for making Zoltan play sour notes."

"I never realised how much I liked that boy" said Attila, much pleased.

"He is single minded; but very protective of his charges" said Cacilia. "You may kiss me good night as a promise of more to come" she added.

His kiss turned her knees to water and she clung to him, gasping for the feelings that ran through her body; and was glad when he just brushed her mouth gently with his and walked quietly out of the room; for had he asked to stay she was not sure she could have denied him.

A complex man, Attila, that Nora had never realised had so much sensitivity and self doubt below the loud bluff exterior. But he minded upsetting her, and would not go further than she wanted; and would take being told to get his temper in hand.

And she so wanted to hold him and make it all right for him!

oOoOo

The term was coming towards its mid point and Halloween; and Cacilia had a word with Volodya about having the concert at Halloween instead of the end of term if the children were ready; and explained why, and why she wanted a member of the press there. She needed Volodya on her side before approaching Zoltan; though if the little boy was against the idea it was all off, of course.

Volodya did not like it; but he agreed dubiously and said that he would permit the Wizarding Wireless reporter to make a recording on the undertaking that only the best might be played as an excerpt in case anyone made a mess of things and would then be embarrassed.

"I'll get Clovis to make nice and use all his dark arts to drop in a confundment and a light compulsion to want to show the children at their best if it's the type who'd normally go for the embarrassing moments" said Cacilia. "I need to learn how to do that; I missed out not taking Dark Arts; though as it stood I hardly would have thought so."

"We both still have much to learn" said Volodya "Though I CAN do it with a tune."

oOoOo

Zoltan was enthusiastic about the idea of being on wizarding wireless and letting the world know how happy he was at school to show up his mother, who was, he said, almost certainly telling all the witches she knew how miserable her poor baby was.

"Even if she doesn't listen to the broadcast I bet some of the people she knows will" he said.

The concert was to be added to by a sketch from the Eulenspiegel twins as stand up comics, which as Zlatko said unkindly was hardly different to any everyday occurrence.

They poked him unmercifully and made him kiss them into submission.

The Jade Fag Marauders joined with Axel, Wencelada, Grishilde and Zyrillis in the fourth to come up with a number of brief send ups of popular songs and musicians; they had created Katti Krächzen out of balloons and planned to over inflate her as they sang 'come and stir my cauldron hard' so she exploded; had written a piece of elegiac opera in the style of Callinus Strainz but with their own words moaning that he was such a miserable git that he could not write real music; and just went to excess in makeup and antics sending up Kunstwerke with 'TransEuro Leyline' finishing with Nachthexen's 'Witchmaster' with all the boys but Zyrillis – he being the tallest – in drag, and he dressed as Attila Nagy with all the females and pseudo females fawning at his feet. It was intended to cheer up Zoltan more than anything else.

And the Asimov twins talked the rest of the quidditch team – except Harald Trollkettil who refused to have anything to do with it – into singing the English song 'There's a zombie in my attic' to show just how seriously the English took inferii.

oOoOo

The actual musicians were playing a medley of polkas and were including Volodya's own arrangement of Colonel Bogey in that, as a nice message; and Corneliu and Zoltan were to play a duet of violin and cello. They would then play two or three popular songs that the school might join in and sing, and as their final piece would play 'Walking in the air' as a tribute to Jade with Bronislava's pure young voice providing the lyrics. Their pieces were to be distributed amongst the rest to give them a rest.

And the day of the concert dawned in sleet; and Clovis saw to have the reporter and his sound team well warmed with ginger wine and hot cakes. Tildi saw to that, bossing the kitchen elves. They arranged the recording equipment and Clovis checked surreptitiously that there was nothing transmitting via ley line.

The musicians were busy having last minute nerves; except Zoltan who was coldly excited.

Sigismund took one of his cold hands.

"Passion, brother; don't play as a revenge; play to show papa how good you are and how much you justify his faith in you in asking specifically to have Professor Potishev in to teach" he said.

"He did?" Zoltan was surprised.

"He did; Corneliu's dad was going to have him sent a music teacher, but Papa spoke to Frau Von Luytens and she arranged it all" said Sigismund.

"Papa is the best" said Zoltan "Mama would have made sure I knew that and told me I had better justify the expense if she had done it, or she would be so disappointed to have spent all that extra. And likely I'd not have done so well for worrying about it" he added. "Yes; I want to show that papa is special and that I play for HIM!"

Sigismund nodded to himself; his brother would do fine now. So grimly implacable, he could not but fear that Zoltan would make a relatively poor showing for being too mechanical.

When they started, the polkas being the opening number, Sigismund definitely knew he had no fears; Zoltan's cello was singing. So too was Corneliu's fiddle; and Sigismund worked hard as second fiddle not to be too mechanical himself. Then in the 'Colonel Bogey' section Felicks led on his horn and the whole school were busy clapping along to the music. It would be frowned on in a real concert of course; but in a school concert it lifted the children who were playing for the first time.

The Eulenspiegels were on next and reduced the school to gales of laughter as their jokes poked fun at staff and seniors and political figures alike.

Then the music group played a number of popular songs, Volodya telling the school it was their turn to help with the entertainment; and the eight of the middle school followed this with the co-operation of the Eulenspiegels introducing each act while they did quick changes for the next if they had to. Keeping four on and four off made THAT easier and Katti Krätchzen a lone wobbling figure on the stage with Bronislava borrowed to warble – Leva's descriiption – while they all got into overblown robes to worship at the feet of the Witchmaster.

Attila was crying with laughter over THAT whilst promising wild retribution!

The song 'there's a zombie in my attic' followed that to have all the comedy over and done with; and Volodya announced the featured musicians of the school, Corneliu Stanescu and Zoltan Nagy. Felicks was glad that it was not him this year; but next year he would be ready!

They played 'Moonlight Sonata' and 'Mood Indigo'; and the house stood.

And then they were playing as a group again and Bronislava sang, with a quaver at first but soon settling down, the song that the Snapes had made theirs; and the applause was thunderous.

oOoOo

"You are one of the youngest children in the school, aren't you Zoltan?" asked the reporter.

"Yes sir, I think so; my birthday isn't until the summer. It doesn't make much difference yet but I guess I'll be ready to spit when it means I can't take my apparating licence with everyone else" said Zoltan.

The reporter laughed.

"That IS looking ahead! You and Corneliu have a very special sound together; are you thinking of forming a group at all as you get older?"

"We are a group sir" said Zoltan. "We all of us work together; it's just that Corny and Felicks and I take it more seriously but Felicks didn't want to solo this time. We all have fun playing and singing together you know!"

"Oh, I was thinking about a professional music group" said the reporter.

"I was thinking of doing a year at Prince Peak post ZH to learn how to use music even more and see if I might teach in Romania" said Corneliu.

"I'm not really sure what I mean to do; unless I become a Vehmgericht" said Zoltan "Or I might teach. My papa is a teacher; it's a great profession. I'm sure he'll back me, however, whatever I do. I'm having such a great time at school I haven't stopped much to consider the future though."

"You are enjoying yourself then? Up to a lot of japes I'll be bound?"

"Well we can't really talk about it because it hasn't come off yet" said Zoltan "On account of the papier-mâché taking its own sweet time to dry in this weather."

"We could whisper if you'll cross you heart not to tell anyone what we're planning" said Corneliu.

"I confess to being intrigued" said the reporter.

Shortly thereafter he was roaring with laughter.

"Well that's a lot more enterprising than in MY young day!" he said "There's a different atmosphere here too, one of jollity and fun; I hope you get your lessons done too?"

"Oh YES sir!" said Corneliu.

"I'm trying to be an 'O' average student" said Zoltan "But I still average 'E' in two of my classes. It's something to aspire to, but I don't think I'm ever going to love plants and I know History is important but it makes me go to sleep. I'd never want to be an Anwalt, so tedious all those almost identical laws! Still, most of the lessons are really interesting and I'm awfully glad I came here, because I've got some really good friends."

"And you aren't exactly models of rectitude either by the sound of it so I don't have to worry about you turning into little prigs for your industry and rare talent!" laughed the reporter. "I shall certainly be playing an excerpt from your offerings on the Wizarding Wireless ; and I hope we'll be featuring both of you – and your friend with the horn and the child with the silver voice – on the wireless in the future. Perhaps when you are older Durmstrang might put on a featured concert with permission granted to us to relay it live."

"When we're older, and perhaps more musical pupils have come to give such a performance more depth, such might well happen" said Corneliu. "Our teacher is an old boy and was much disappointed that there was a dearth of musical pupils in his time; he's a brilliant musician and very knowledgeable about using music in magic. It's a study we take very seriously. It's why most of my friends joined us in the music group, actually; to build on the chanting we had already learned. It's not so powerful as chanting, but a tune enchanted with proper ritual into an instrument or item, or a music box made with the right ritual can still produce the same magical effect as if the magical tune is played by a live musician; it's a possible great boon to society as a whole and I shall be looking into perhaps working with clockwork makers to make musical boxes to aid childbirth or reduce fever and such applications as well as teaching; my father is looking into acquiring such a factory so I may put my talents to good use."

"That IS a decent idea" said Zoltan. "And I guess if my half brother and I set up a school together anywhere in our own country we could also have a community health programme running with it. He's in the music group too but more as an adjunct to chanting. We've become very close since we've been at school together" he added.

After all, she could scarcely hate Papa worse; and she might as well know that PAPA was honest with him about such things.

And she should know that he was NOT going to be her little pet musician to show off the way she had told him so often to play for her cronies.

"Do we get a fee if we get featured on the Wizarding Wireless ?" Zoltan asked.

"If you get a proper feature, yes; why, are you kept hard up for pocket money?" asked the reporter.

"Oh no! Only if we get a fee we can put it towards musical scholarships for those not eligible for Durmstrang to go to Prince Peak or to have extra music lessons in the subsidised school; after all, music crosses all boundaries of race and social class" said Zoltan. "And then we get to do our bit in promoting music generally."

"Cool wheeze" said Corneliu.

"Admirable!" said the reporter. "Do you know if they teach music in the Subsidised school?"

"I'd think so" said Corneliu "Frau Baronin Von Luytens taught US last year as a voluntary class – as Professor Potishev does – and she's tremendously good. We did the Walking in the Air as a tribute to her; she plays flute and harp and she's the best I've ever heard. I can't see her leaving music out of the curriculum for her goblins and lowbloods. And if any of them have no or inadequate parents she'd probably adopt any musical ones at that" he added.

"You children don't resent education going to those of a class not traditionally accepted at Durmstrang then?" asked the reporter.

"Why should we?" retorted Corneliu "Those of ability should be taught to the extent of their ability; to waste good brains in festering poverty-stricken ignorance is a crime. To waste talent likewise. Besides, in a couple of years they'll likely be another school team to give us a decent quidditch match without having histrionics about being suckered into getting stuck in the goal hoop by Zlatko or throwing a squalling match about a few inferii."

"Most people don't view inferii with joy" said the reporter.

"Yeah, but it wasn't like they wanted to play, was it?" said Zoltan "And the grown ups wouldn't let us out to see if we could have a crack at them; and we KNOW flame spells too."

"THAT sounds almost English!" laughed the reporter.

"Well anything the English can do, so too can we at Durmstrang" said Zoltan staunchly.

THAT should make his loyalties clear too!

oOoOo

The half term Halloween holiday was the perfect time to finish the papier-mâché grindylows and make them waterproof with a quick chant; and then the senior baths had to be filled with slimy looking green jelly.

"I'll be glad to get this jape over" said Bronislava "Making Fritz, Hans, Franz and Seppi has been most awfully hard work."

"It'll be worth it to hear their howls" said Sigismund. "At least I hope so; I suggest we lurk after we've supposedly gone to bed for when the big ones come up; they're going to play games of divining lovers with apple peel and nuts on fire shovels and jump over candlesticks and things so I should think they'll want to bath before turning in; and there's a convenient marauding passage we can hang out in, the one that runs from the third year common room. It passes by so I should think we'd hear a lot, and if we set up view-o-sneaks we'll get to see too; and if we skank some apples from the kitchen THEY won't hurt our teeth after we've cleaned them because they're fruit and virtuous; and we can bring in eiderdowns and a few story books or we can make up ghost stories and wait."

The camping out in the marauding passage was voted almost as much fun as the idea of watching the big ones be shocked by grindylows; and Zoltan made excuse to go to bed early and arranged his covers to look as though he was asleep for when the others came in; the second year boys told the other three in their dorm that they didn't want to KNOW what they were doing; and Bronislava told the girls in her dormitory, such as Zdena Masicwicza and Sonja Orn that if they'd only had the gumption to ask to be Marauders too they would have been in on it instead of wondering what she was up to, which was hard cheese to them.

They all settled down with apples and raisins and a selection of ghost stories and tried not to go to sleep. Fortunately, even with eiderdowns it was not QUITE warm enough for that much comfort; and by dint of poking anyone who started snoring, they managed to keep a giggling wakefulness until sounds of hushed – but not very – voices coming up the stairs heralded the seniors.

The view-o-sneaks were clustered around; and cries of

"What the…?"

"Oh Powers!"

"SHIIIIT!" and the odd scream too echoed in the bathrooms.

Fortunately the seniors were not so silly as to assume that Grindylows were really all that LIKELY to have invaded their bathrooms and Fritz, Hans, Franz and Seppi were swiftly evicted from their jelly, and the jelly replaced with proper hot water.

The Musical Marauders laughed until they cried; and too tired to bother to do anything else, curled up in a single ball like a bundle of kittens and went to sleep.

It HAD been worth the trouble and they had also learned a few more words in a selection of languages!

oOoOo

The seniors decided to take their watery surprise with dignity and to ignore the jape further other than to complain to the Musical marauders that they would have expected at the very least that their grindylows ought to have been able to sing, even if they couldn't do underwater dances.

"Damn; we forgot that" said Lindhard "Maybe next time"

"So long as you don't repeat on US; bad form to repeat" said Stiv.

"That's Kappa" said Beryx.

"Eh?" asked Stiv.

"Well it's Kappa that like cucumber; and cucumber repeats" said Beryx.

Stiv laughed.

"And I remember in our ZP year – when Professor Von Luytens was teaching us first when she was still doing her own ZHs – that Jochen wrote that you could tell Kappa were dark creatures because they ate cucumbers which constituted utter evil" he said. "Lumme, we knew NOTHING from that Schrempf woman! We were reduced to citing Katti Krächzen as a dark creature as a putative banshee because we knew so little!"

"Well you weren't that far out, were you?" said Beremud. "Donner und Blitzen, how I laughed when that creature's bosom swelled until it exploded; funniest thing I've ever seen!"

"Yes, we accidentally saw her live once in Berlin" said Jochen "I wondered at the time how her bosoms stayed in her gown; now I know. They were judiciously deflated just enough not to escape by foot pump worked by someone behind the scenes."

Several minds boggled.

oOoOo

Papier-mâché was quickly wielded again for the last day of half term and some rapid drying spells and a lot of ingenious enchanting with mixing and matching of transfigurational spells and charms so that the staff room was invaded by a pair of self motile bosoms painted bright pink with little lips instead of nipples and singing in duet writhing, quivering, bouncing and stretching appropriately.

"You know I haven't the heart to actually find a detention for that one" said Panyot Panov giggling weakly and wiping his eyes after having all but rolled on the floor.

"We must confiscate the er….thing of course" said Agalisse Schreiber.

"We could set it on governors" suggested Attila.

"Kick it and see if it starts up again" said Orlando.

"Are you kidding? If it starts up again I reckon I'll wet myself!" said Katarina.

"I think it is disgusting and in bad taste" said Helois Fabeln, the History Professor.

"Yes, but you're in a minority of one, Helois" said Kunigunde Kluba "Even I who admire the range and verve of Katti Krächzen find it funny."

"And beautifully enchanted" said Birgit Junger "I only wish the little pests would work as hard in class for me as they do on their pranks!"

"Sad, but unfortunately the way children are" said Nannerl Schwefel. "This HAS to be your protégés, Volodya."

"It does, doesn't it?" said Volodya "What I find sad is, that even treating it as a satire, even so the sound with the beautifully crafted two part harmony is superior to the voice of the original; I fear, Kunigunde, I do not entirely share your admiration; I can hear too clearly where she uses vibrato to cover deficiencies in her voice, but there is that in her that is skilful so I hope we shall not argue."

"Oh I don't know enough about music to argue with YOU dear" said Kunigunde. "I don't really care what other people like so long as nobody tries to tell me I ought not to like the things I do; besides, my honking daffodils like it when I play them these newfangled records of her on the gramophone. An excellent invention!"

"Muggle, of about an hundred years ago" said Volodya "Before widespread use of electricity; one of the mechanical inventions that the English are introducing to the enrichment, I have no doubt, of the Malfoys."

"And Snapes" said Cacilia. "And why not? Such toys are a pleasure, and I must say I'm glad of a sewing machine to make robes to my own style."

Cacilia actually had a goblin seamstress in her employ who made her clothes for her; but not all the professors were in her income bracket so she did not bother to mention this.

Orlando created a diversion anyway by firing energy into the aggressively singing bosoms and setting them off demanding that they fly someone like a broom further than the moon and Professor Fabeln got up with what she believed to be dignity and left the room while Panayot Panov gave up all pretence at any decorum and lay on the floor to guffaw.

oOoOo

With the hilarity of the long weekend, lessons might get under way with refreshed spirits and only interrupted in the upper forms by the need to find a partner for the Yule Ball, which silliness traditionally started after Halloween and sometimes earlier.

Cacilia and Attila had found their partners – not that either was required to attend as the pupils were – and had been engaging in illicit love play couched in the formal language of Professor and pupil and practical demonstrations in terms of some still relatively chaste gropes as they got to know each other and explore what each enjoyed. The vicissitudes of the upper forms left them entirely unmoved.

The upper sixth – apart from Everilda Widder and Hugibert Helligen, who were thus condemned to each other's company – decided to do it entirely by lot; the boys all placing their names into a hat and the girls each choosing a partner by picking out a slip of paper. Zhanargul ended up with Takeo Namudzu and was pleased to be with a blood brother; and Saula was with Stiv, who was at least a staunch chanter and member of the ECC even if he had a fund of rather risqué Russian jokes that he insisted on telling when dancing.

Zlatko was taking Desolina as she was still shy; the Eulenspiegel twins were certain enough of him not to worry about that. Zlatka invited pure blooded and pompous Adelard Löenzahn purely so she could wind him up all evening and see how long it took for his pomposity to burst and for him to have a temper tantrum. Zlatka did not often break out in pure devilish mischief; but Adelard had been being particularly annoying this term over improper behaviour before dark creatures and the letting down of the sixth in the singing of ridiculous songs with a REPORTER there too; and had tried to lecture Zhanargul even! Zhanargul told him bluntly that if he ever found the cojones to fight inferii and efreeti she'd listen to his views but in the meantime she had better things to do than to have her ears dampened by the outpourings of a milk-fed chicken. Adelard had retired hurt; but even so, Zlatka believed in making a few things clear. And she planned to go to the ball dressed as a goblin woman in traditional goblin finery just to make him splutter.

In the fifth, Harald Trollkettil rather assumed that his position on the school quidditch team made him sexually irresistible. The Eulenspiegels fell about laughing when Harald expressed this view.

The Eulenspiegels were planning to go with each other, with appropriate embellishments, as Nightingale the Robber and Baba Yaga which, being Russian, was as close as they could get to Kazakhstani folk characters. And when practising their forms, Takeo exclaimed that Nightingale the Robber was no more nor less than a Tengu, a fey type of his own land; which led to much speculation that the original of the Russian tales having been either a particularly exploratory member of this kind, or one who had made life in Japan too hot for him, and who fetched up in Russia.

It was all very interesting to contemplate; and another thing the Eulenspiegels had learned, which to their voracious minds was always a good thing.

oOoOo

"WELL!" said Wencelada, after watching Harald Trolkettil virtually foaming at the mouth because girls were not falling at his feet "All I can say is, thank goodness we're not as elderly as those who have to go to the ball that seem to be in their second childhood."

Harald loosed a stinging hex at her; which Wencelada countered effortlessly without even bothering to get her wand out.

She and her friends withdrew, and were heartily glad that they were four and blooded too; and two of each sex. And who went with whom really mattered very little when they were old enough next year.

Though Wencelada DID have a growing preference for Axel. But if that came to anything time would tell when they became ancient enough to need to find out.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Utterly oblivious to the troubles of those old enough to have to dance, the Musical Marauders did their own thing, which sometimes involved winding up older ones by assuming dippy expressions and grabbing each other to whirl around in parodies of waltzes – accompanied by enchanted feet or plain old fashioned whistling.

They became very adept at sashaying out of the way of stinging hexes.

They escaped when they could to go for walks outside in the crisp snow. And they were wandering along, now and then pausing to throw themselves into nice crisp vistas of snow from which to rise carefully to see how good an impression of their bodies they had made, as a reverse sculpture, when half a dozen rough looking men came out of the forest.

"Hey! You kids! We're looking for a kid named Zoltan!" one of them said.

"Why?" asked Sigismund before Zoltan could answer.

"That's none of your business kid; unless you're Zoltan" growled the man. "Reddish hair she say; well that's three – four of you".

"I'm Zoltan" said Bronislava brightly.

He backhanded her casually so she fell.

The boys started towards him but he levelled a goblin made pistol; and so did the others.

"Back off" he said.

"You so are SUCH a bully to hit a little girl!" cried Zoltan "And we WILL tell Madam Bacsó about you!"

"Well you might; but we'll be long gone" said the man. "Now, let's cut the crap; is one of you Zoltan and if so, which one?"

His eyes flicked between Zoltan, Sigismund, Beremud and Coreliu, all of whom could be loosely described as having reddish hair; from the dark auburn of Beremud, through Zoltan's own Titian locks, Sigismund's chestnut hair and Corneliu's reddish blonde.

"I'm Zoltan" said Sigismund.

"No I'm Zoltan" said Corneliu.

"I'm Zoltan and I dyed my hair" said Beryx

"I'm Zoltan" said Zoltan

"I'm Zoltan" said Beremud

"And I'm Zoltan but I used a colour change charm" said Lindhard.

"You kids think you're smart" snarled the man "Well let me give you another choice. The real Zoltan can step forward or the girl gets it" and he pointed his gun at Bronislava.

Bronislava gasped; then a look of revelation came over her face.

"_EXPELLIARMUS!_" she cried.

The pistol flew from his hand.

Six other young voices echoed her shout; and then seven wands came out. The men went for their own wands.

Corneliu started chanting; the chant that was the area of effect shield charm as he moved forward to cover Bronislava in it. She rolled back towards the boys.

The children may not have known many offensive spells but they DID know _levicorpus_; and that they might use the disarming spell again on wands; and that slugs pouring out of the mouth would stop most people casting spells. Bronislava ran to collect all the wands as several loud CRAC noises heralded the arrival of reinforcements.

It was in fact the collective school blood group.

"They wanted me for something, Papa" said Zoltan "Bronislava was SO brave!"

"She's a good girl" said Attila. "You shall tell me all about it…. Clovis, Cacilia, Zhanargul, Takeo, as adults witness please what has been done to this child's face before I heal it; it looks like a broken cheek bone."

Four wands checked.

Four heads nodded in fury. And Attila levelled his own wand at Bronislava and healed it; concentrated absently and there was an audible CRACK, Bronislava gasped and then put her hand to her face in wonder.

"By the Powers sir, I didn't realise it wasn't supposed to hurt to talk!" she said.

"Your father is a bestial piece of dung" said Attila "And one day I'm going to tell him so" he glowered on the prisoners on whom the Asimov twins had dropped bindings, the tickling curse and the bat bogey hex to add to their misery. "And so are these swine. You students may port them back to the school as you see fit; the head is going to have something to say about this and so are the Vehmgerichten. Come, children!" he waved the youngest in.

Two other layers of marauders and the supporting group thoughtfully regarded the six miscreants.

"Can't leave them here" said Zlatko "They make the place look untidy especially the one with dirty underwear. The unicorns don't like it untidy; and nor do the centaurs."

"The centaurs might use them for target practise" said Zlatka.

"They prefer moving targets" said Zhanargul "I suppose we might put some kind of moving charm on them akin to that on a snitch to flutter about….. no actually the mind boggles and we don't want boggled centaurs. Let's let the third years practise locomotor charms on them."

Elfleda, Leva, Sophie and Kjell grinned wickedly. They could manage jerky motion a bit at a time with the odd 'accidental' rotation accompanied with a loud 'oops!' It was more than slugs that the miscreants were vomiting by the time they got to the castle especially one that Kjell was giving attention to that he dragged under an overhanging branch to precipitate snow inside his victim's turned back robes. Axel and Zyrillis took the leader and the one that looked to back him; and Axel dragged the leader scarily close to the raging Gerhardt. The stone snowman lashed out and gnashed his stone teeth satisfactorily. Zyrillis managed to get his snagged accidentally on purpose on a bronze statue of a stag. He was not gentle about disentangling him. And since they had finished vomiting slugs and were using some rather naughty words between heaving, the children thoughtfully placed a _saponify_ spell in their dirty mouths to wash them out; as Sofie sweetly explained.

The six would-be abductors were a sorry crew by the time Agata came out of the castle to find out why delivering them took so long.

On due consideration, because they were dirty objects, she told the children to leave them outside and away from any main windows since nice children would not want to see such disreputable objects hanging about.

"Did you want the ZH Dark Arts class to use them to practise curses on, Frau Professor?" asked Zhanargul politely "Only if it is so permitted I should like to book one; my cruciatus curse is a little dodgy and too I wish to practise the personal boggart curse and the death dancing curse. And Takeo here should really practise the entrail expelling curse and the Jade Wolf curse too."

"I'm sorry my dear, but you know you are only permitted to practice on convicts" said Agata "And they haven't been convicted yet; still you may have an opportunity before your exams."

"We could sort of just keep them and not tell the authorities perhaps?" said Takeo, eyeing them speculatively.

"I suppose if they won't make a full confession it might be the easiest way to deal with them" said Agata thoughtfully. "So long as you don't leave a mess."

"It's what the Vanishing spell is for Ma'am" said Zhanargul.

"Mweeel dtorg!" managed one through soap.

"O damn!" said Zhanargul sounding disappointed. "Ah well!"

oOoOo

"The death dancing curse and the Jade Wolf curse?" asked Takeo "Have I missed something?"

"Not at all" said Zhanargul calmly "I was making them up as I went along for maximum effect; they'll come across with the whole truth like songbirds now."

They did.

They also begged the Vehmgerichten who came to collect them to take them to safety in gaol away from these terrible children.

As Agata was grinning when they did this, the chief Vehmgericht raised a quizzical eyebrow and Agata murmured

"I don't know WHAT rubbish the children read but it appears to give them melodramatic imaginations that leads them to invent wild and terrible sounding dark curses. And have enough sense not to over-embellish and leave it up to these creature's imaginations; that I wager are darker for real than any of my dramatists!"

oOoOo

The six ruffians had been paid by a Hungarian lady to kidnap a little boy called Zoltan and bring him to her, unharmed; and if there were any other boys who looked at all like him she was not bothered what happened to them. She had given them her name and address to send an owl to when they had the boy.

Nora Nagy was in trouble.

And even if she managed some loophole of law that permitted her to get off since she might claim she could not be charged with kidnap of her own son it was a rash act that had caused actual bodily harm to another child – Bronislava – and Attila now had the ammunition of child endangerment to add to his divorce suit and plaint to have sole custody of Zoltan.

The Vehmgericht, a middle aged man of many scars, came to ask Attila if the little girl who had been hurt was Zoltan's sister.

Attila blinked.

"I know I've got about in the time of my once-only consummated marriage – that's Zoltan – but not as far as Czechoslovakia. I can't stand women who let their men hit children about so I'd hardly have been likely to find the child's mother terribly appetising anyway. What gave you such an idea?"

"Because, Herr Nagy, your wife said, when charged with causing a child actual bodily harm, that at least she'd hurt you by hurting your bastard" said the Vehmgericht.

"Well that's slander of Bronislava's mother for a start" said Attila. "besides, SHE is hardly the half BROTHER Zoltan has mentioned, is she? How like Nora to leap to conclusions! My other son stood ready to defend his brother and was foremost in those who neutralised the attackers; though I doubt any of the others were far behind. They're a good little bunch."

"And only twelve and eleven years old? Such fortitude!"

"Foolhardiness more like" said Attila "Think they're Harry Potter at that age. Mind, once that clever child Bronislava realised that as pistols were weapons she could use the disarming charm they had the beggars at a disadvantage; and Corneliu is a very good chanter to hold the shield charm over all of them so all the others had to do was to jinx them."

"He knows the shield charm? So young?"

"We had an English teacher of the dark arts for a year – Nefrita Von Strang" said Attila "Who pointed out that in England it is considered proper in the best families for it to be the first spell taught, wordlessly and wandlessly the moment a child manifests magic. I can't say that I consider that a bad custom."

"These English are extraordinary!" marvelled the Vehmgericht.

oOoOo

Nora Nagy wrote an impassioned letter to her son begging him to understand that she had only done it for him, because she could not bear to be separated any longer, knowing that he was being brainwashed by his father.

Zoltan had got over feeling betrayed, hurt and angry; and had moved onto disgust and contempt. Which was rather made clear when he wrote,

"Madam,

now I have escaped the cloying brainwashing influence of the female who claims to have birthed me – though in light of your many lies I cannot even be sure of that – I am free to pursue my own life; and I cannot see how you can claim having my friends and me threatened to be in any way an act of love. You do not know what the word means. You are as bad a parent as Bronislava's violent father; and though she is used to such level of violence it is no excuse that you have caused her a broken cheekbone. And you are too much of a coward to do your own dirty work but hired minions, thugs of the gutter, who were ready to shoot us one by one until one of us turned out to be the child he sought. How baffled they were when we all – including Broni – claimed to be Zoltan! If I were not so angry that my friend was hurt I should laugh at your inept attempts to be a dark witch; Herr Professor Gierek is quite correct when he says that dark wizards and witches are snivelling little inadequates. I want nothing more to do with you; if I receive any other communications from you, Frau Nagy, I will burn them unopened, now or when you get out of Nurmengard."

He signed it 'Z. Nagy'.

He then went to see Cacilia.

"Please, Professor, I rather think I should like a cuddle and a spare mama" he said.

Cacilia lifted him, big boy as he was, onto her lap for a cuddle; and he burrowed.

"Your father said that it was wrong to intercept the letter to you; was he correct?" asked Cacilia.

"He was" said Zoltan "It is the final thing that shows me how little she is to do with me, that she could claim to have those awful men kidnap me because she loved me; especially if I was the wimp she thinks me, the scared child I was before Sigismund taught me how to find my courage. I would have been terrified, and too upset that they had hurt and threatened my friends even if nobody had got worse hurt. If we weren't Marauders and in the ECC we shouldn't have known how to fight them; any other group in my class would have been at their mercy. She really does not care for anyone but herself; and by the way this is so nice and much more mumsy than the strokings and caresses she used to give me whilst telling me not to crumple her gown. Am I going to have any little brothers and sisters?"

Cacilia blinked over a lot in that little speech.

"Brothers and sisters? Eventually yes; we hadn't got as far as making them yet" she said "I was hoping to have children though if you'd like that."

"I'll be too old to take care of them in school" said Zoltan, thoughtfully "When I'm in the sixth I must pick a promising Marauder type of fag who'll see them all right."

"That's very sensible and far sighted" said Cacilia, managing not to laugh over plans for siblings not even yet conceived. Poor little boy that a simple cuddle was more mumsy than anything he had known! WHAT a bitch Nora was!

She fed him milk and biscuits and suggested he did his homework in her room; which meant she had all seven marauders doing their homework in her room which was a squash but fairly convivial and ended with a hilarious game of exploding snap when they were all done.

She shooed them off to bed and went to find Attila.

"Come to my room" she said "Zoltan has put in an order for siblings; it would be a shame to disappoint him."

Attila gasped.

"Truly? You are ready to go further?"

"Attila you drive me insane with passion and light a fire in my belly" said Cacilia.

He glanced over his shoulder to see that they were not overlooked; and kissed her, hard. Cacilia moved against him, reaching her arms around him.

He pulled away.

"I will be ten minutes" he said. "I will want a dressing gown; it's perishing cold going to the bathroom without."

"Darling we ARE an old married couple; that you can manage practicality as well as passion" murmured Cacilia.

"Well if you WANT it to freeze solid and drop off….."

She grinned.

"It won't half make a loud noise when it hits the floor!"

He spanked her.

"Go and get ready for me, you minx!"

If Cacilia was nervous her nerves evaporated under his kisses and caresses; and they loved urgently.

And Zoltan slid out of his bed to break bounds to ask Sigismund,

"Am I imagining it or has Papa finally got it on with Mama Cacilia?"

"No you're not; now shut up and go back to bed" said Sigismund.

Attila was not as yet as used to blocking as some of the group; and all the blood group at least knew exactly why neither Professor Nagy nor Professor Von Freyer did not turn up for breakfast.

OoOoO

Sigismund and Zoltan went to the kitchen and made nice to the elves to lay up a double breakfast tray; and went to knock on Cacilia's door and marched in with breakfast and a couple of blue rosettes which the happy couple might take any way they liked; and reminded them that lessons started in half an hour so they better not get any ideas when dipping their soldiers.

This was Sigismund's offering and had Attila roaring 'WHELP!' at him as they made a hasty retreat.

"I should think that if we've been awarded a prize it means they are pleased with us at least" said Cacilia, blushing. "I HOPE it doesn't mean we leaked enough emotion to be marked on performance."

Attila actually blushed!

oOoOo

The first transfigurations class was with the lower sixth and Zlatko passed Attila a bundle of papers.

"I asked for a test paper in your name sir; I thought you might find it less tiring" he said.

"HOW much leakage was there?" demanded Attila.

"Only enough to know what was going on and not to be surprised you're looking tired sir" said Zlatko.

"Hmmm, well, thoughtful of you" said Attila; and proceeded to hand out the test.

oOoOo

Cacilia was fortunate enough to be teaching third years who were not cheeky enough, the four who were blooded, to make any comment; even if she had passed Zyrillis of the fourth whistling something that sounded like a version of 'come and stir my cauldron hard'. One had to expect schoolchildren to be a little inclined to comment; and to notice, even without being blood bonded. And Zyrillis was.

Cacilia asked Xanthe and Xanthippe in a later class,

"All right, how much backwash was there?"

"Some" said Xanthe

"Not a huge amount" said Xanthippe "Except at first."

"Well it was enough to make us feel all sort of nice in the tummy and to think about Zlatko" said Xanthe with devastating honesty.

Cacilia burned.

"Embarrassing for the boys" she muttered.

"Oh no" said Xanthippe "They're just pleased you finally got around to it instead of dripping sexual tension all over the place."

"My twin got tact left out when they were ladling it around" said Xanthe.

"I expect I'll live with it" sighed Cacilia "Thank you for your frankness."

"Well it kind of helps us learn what needs most blocking on" said Xanthe "When we finally do Zlatko."

It was no cheek from the Eulenspiegels; they were just like that.

oOoOo

The body of the school was generally speaking either too young or too taken up with their own romantic highs and lows to notice the relationship between two teachers; and those with the initiative to notice had, generally, been swept into the blood group by Jade in any case and so acquired their information by more direct sources; and politely kept their noses out of the business of their bloodkin.

As for the staff, the loud quarrels that Cacilia and Attila had been indulging in by means of their own brand of foreplay had been enough to convince most that the two actually disliked each other intensely. Apart from the two blooded, it may be said that Agata Bacsó knew full well that Attila was smitten – she having once been his lover and being inclined herself to bicker with him for fun – and wished him and Cacilia well; and Orlando Carcano, who was nobody's fool chuckled to himself when Helois Fabeln commented that at least Attila seemed to be behaving himself a little better and had stopped picking on Cacilia for some perverse reason of his own, probably that she was so much better born than him and German into the bargain.

"I think you might have noticed that Cacilia gives as good as she gets, Helois" said Orlando. Professor Fabeln shrugged.

"Oh I grant you she is as crossgrained in her own way as he is; but she has the right for being born to it; though one does wonder why a girl of her background should wish to teach."

"Perchance" said Orlando dryly "She enjoys it and feels it a calling."

"I doubt she'll be permitted such foolishness long" said Frau Fabeln – who was Frau of courtesy not fact being an acidulated old maid – "Since doubtless her parents will arrange a suitable marriage for her and insist she gives up teaching. I can't see why anyone would teach when they are rich enough not to have to."

"Ah, Helois, and that is why your students only ever achieve mediocre grades and those from those of us who teach because we enjoy it get a generally higher grade from our students" said Orlando.

This was undoubtedly true; occasional history students achieved an 'E' at best even at ZP; whereas Orlando had students who gained 'O' grades even at ZH. Cacilia had not been one of them – she got 'E' – because she had had a little trouble with her re'em in the practical. However as Nefrita Von Strang had got an 'O' in Cacilia's year, and so too had Baard Trollkettil the year following them, last year, he might well boast. Helois Fabeln flushed angrily, achieved a flounce and set to marking work with unnecessary vigour, grimacing as she bent the point of her pen.

Orlando thought her an idiot.

If either Sigismund or Zoltan had any interest in History he would see to having them given coaching by a Prince Peak teacher in the holidays. Who would doubtless teach in three weeks what Fabeln failed to teach in as many years.

In addition to the tribulations of the ball, students had the equal tribulation of end of term tests; the which the marauders all took in their stride, knowing full well that they were well ahead for a selection of illicit library work and asking questions of their various elders.

Attila, Cacilia and Panayot became quite resigned to fifth formers, and even some third years – and the occasional junior – writing blithely about Assimilative Correlation, or quoting Golapott's third law or discussing Waffling's principle of Extrinsic Alteration and its relationship with Assimilative locomotion by precision. As the last ZH level concept had come from the pen of second year Beremud, Panayot sighed and murmured vaguely that he wished the ECC would not teach QUITE such advanced theory to the little ones.

"The ECC doesn't teach any theory to any of the kids" said Cacilia "The Shield Charm is a practical lesson; and well worth it I'd say."

"Then WHO has been infesting Beremud Gerecht with the use of Assimilative Locomotion by Precision in relation to Extrinsic Alteration?" asked Panayot.

"I haven't a clue; it's beyond where I went" said Cacilia. "Assimilative Locomotion by precision? Is that a form of naming magic to aid with locomotor charms?"

"More or less" said Panayot "It's one of Waffling's uses of Emeric Switch, using similar principles to Assimilative Correlation. Extrinsic Alteration is nothing more than the term expected to be known for the whole principle of charms – that a charm is a spell which causes something to act in an unnatural way or for an effect to occur that is not going to happen without the input of the magical power of the caster; all magic is a form of Extrinsic Alteration at bottom. And although it is USED throughout the school, like some of the other more esoteric terms we expect the sixth to learn it isn't taught with its definition before the sixth."

"As I recall" said Attila, looking up "Beremud was having problems with his charms practicals; I expect he asked someone like Zlatko for help. And if you ask me, Beremud is a child who actually WILL perform better if he knows the proper name for something rather than being oppressed by it as most are; which is why we DON'T teach them before the sixth. I had that group trying to remember the term they had heard – which was Assimilative Correlation – last year after they came upon it looking up – as I recall –how to turn a girl in their class into a cabbage. They may not have remembered the words exactly but they got the context right" he added dryly.

"He has actually been performing better in class now you mention it" said Panayot. "Dear me! I should normally have thought it would make a student who was a little slow LESS well able to perform; I applaud Zlatko – I'm sure you're right in guessing it to be him – for taking a bold and correct decision. Well, well!"

"I better not mention that Sigismund quoted Gamp" Attila murmured to Cacilia.

oOoOo

Sigismund might have remembered Gamp – quite unnecessarily, as his father wrote on his test paper – but Everilda Widder, who reckoned herself one of the best in the class at Transfigurations, had forgotten all of Gamp's exceptions and could only remember that there were five of them. It was a new concept the upper sixth were struggling with to come to terms with the Law of Elemental Conjuration and its exceptions; and Everilda was determinedly unimpressed with the concept that bunnies were – ultimately – made of sunlight, a simplification that Attila had borrowed from Jade. It was an explanation to cover why objects, especially animate creatures, were hard to conjure because of the amount of energy required to make them; and why, without some very fancy enchantment, such conjured items disappeared after a while, not holding enough energy to last permanently. Everilda obstinately refused to accept that energy and matter were essentially the same; even when Attila told her in exasperation that this was a principle even muggles accepted to manipulate with their technology. Or maybe she refused to accept the principle because muggles also used it. She learned the law and its exceptions without an iota of understanding which is why, in the test, she promptly forgot it again.

As a result her test result was poor; only an 'A' since Attila was testing the understanding of Gamp quite thoroughly in this exam to see who had understood and who had not.

As Saula had too declared it a lovely easy paper and had got an 'O' for it this added insult to injury in Everilda's eyes since a German girl of near pure blood – even if not a very high social status – ought not to be outdone by some barbarian from the back of beyond, who was besides only the servant of her barbarian princess.

The concept of a lady in waiting had also rather passed Everilda by and Saula just ignored her jibes with the dignity of one who knew her own worth Hence, when Everilda was brushed passed by Melior Gdylan who was – to her mind – from the same stinking desert flea pit as Saula she chose to take the touch of his sleeve on hers as an insult and let fly with her wand on the gentle Melior. She avoided the cruciatus curse; she might be angry but she was not so foolish as to expose herself to expulsion as Erzebet Czerny had done the previous year. She was however very free with the stinging hex and burning hexes.

Fortunately for Melior, his lady's other fag, Felicks Knapp was also on an errand for Desolina Uccello and had dragged Zoltan along to talk about the really nasty arpeggio in the piece they were practising.

The two juniors wasted no time.

Felicks fired off _expelliarmus_ which he had learned in the ECC; and Zoltan recalled the spell the Asimov twins had used on the would-be kidnappers and cried

"_incarcerous!_" in his clear treble voice. Purple ropes wrapped Everilda. Zoltan followed up with "_Levicorpus!_" he considered for a moment and added "_titillando!_" and left it to Felicks to add the slug vomiting curse when Everilda started calling them unpleasant names.

"Consider that what will happen any time you start bullying one of us" said Zoltan "WHY did she do this, Gdylan?"

"She said I barged her; I never did!" said Melior "I guess I touched her in passing; she has wide sleeves and she was rather hogging the passage instead of keeping to the right like you're supposed to. She's dead nasty!"

"Well I guess if she has that nasty a temper sooner or later when she's left school she'll run into someone who makes her nasty, dead" said Zoltan, shrugging. "Any time you want to apologise to Gdylan, Widder, you can just twitch the hand you have mostly out of the ropes; otherwise we're going to leave you there hung up like a spider's lunch. Had to ask" he added as Everilda spat out a slug and called him a vile name. "Oh well; I have better things to do; hope you get a dose of humanity while you're hanging around."

"HOW you dare talk to a sixer like that!" whispered Felicks when they were out of earshot.

"Because she's in the wrong; and if she reports me, I'll ask which fiction she told" said Zoltan. "I am NOT impressed by grown ups and nearly grown ups acting like spoilt brats; and I don't see why any of us kids should have to take being bullied. That's why I'm a marauder; I'm one who fights back and actually I'm going to make an unofficial report to the head girl and so are you Gdylan so she can hear what she did to you."

"SHE said I was a nasty uncouth barbarian like my stinking countrywoman who was only a servant to a filthy camel riding bitch with fleas" said Melior. "I don't know what she was talking about; I'm not a barbarian like these half baked gothic westerners and my only countryman is my sister and she's a cow but I'd still rather have her than that thing."

"Well I suggest you tell Zhanargul that too" said Zoltan who managed to unravel what Everilda DID mean; as would Zhanargul.

He had made an enemy; but she'd be leaving after ZHs and likely too busy studying to take any serious revenge – or if she was not, she was even more of a fool than he took her for. And after she had left it was unlikely that he would ever meet her again.

Zoltan felt too happy in his life to let some silly female disturb it; his papa had found him an excellent stepmama and he had been assured that his grades were good enough to go into the second after Yule, because he had asked to sit the second's exam as well as his own.

So sucks to her, on sour lemons.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Zhanargul went to remove Everilda from the corridor; as she said to the girl, she made the place look untidy. She used the prefect spell to drag her into a classroom and looked on Everilda with contempt.

"And if Melior Gdylan is too innocent to know that you were insulting to me, I am not" said Zhanargul "And I DO want to pass on that he can't see why some barbaric westerner of Gothic heritance could possibly call one of our ancient and civilised culture a barbarian. He has a point; we were building stone palaces when your people lived in stick and mud huts shared with their beasts and the fire in the middle and the smoke finding its way out regardless, rutting in public on the floor whilst dogs quarrelled over the bones in the stinking rushes. Still, opinions aside, the report made was off the record so I'm not here to set you any punishment; though I do think that if you DO consider yourself in any way to be civilised that you ought to apologise to the brat for taking out your bad temper on him."

"Will I HELL!" shouted Everilda.

Zhanargul shrugged.

"Oh well, please yourself; it DOES rather show which one is the least civilised" she said. "If you have to be barbaric however I suggest you do whatever barbaric things you do to yourself and in private; if it comes to my ears that you've been bullying the little ones again I shall take steps; and depending on how bad it is that may range from lines to a head's report."

"I'd never do lines for you!" shouted Everilda.

"Then you would find yourself on the carpet in Frau Bacsó's office for disrespecting HER; since I am a prefect appointed by HER as her representative as you seem to forget; and Head Girl by right of the confidence of the other Prefects" said Zhanargul quietly. "And I strongly advise you to learn to get your temper under control; or you will find that you become one of those half baked dark wizards like Nachtigall and Czerny who, with others, joined with my fool of an uncle and whom we killed after their abortive Inferius attack."

Everilda's face drained of colour. Zhanargul was quite matter of fact about killing those she had known as schoolfellows, albeit now adult; and somehow, she believed the head girl.

Zhanargul righted her and cancelled the bonds; and walked away without further comment.

And Everilda, who resented the children going to the head girl, had to be pleased that they had since as she exited the classroom Zhanargul had dragged her into, it was to see the back of the headmistress passing by where she had but recently been dangling.

Having to explain her predicament to the head would NOT have been comfortable; nor that she had been so thoroughly jinxed by little boys of eleven despite the fact that she was taking Dark Arts to ZH.

It did not stop her resenting them; or Zhanargul. But the idea of becoming someone who Zhanargul might kill without compunction made her at least decide to behave with a bit more circumspection; and though she would never apologise to Melior she knew that she had just been looking for an excuse to lash out at anyone weaker than herself.

And it was Professor Gierek's definition of a dark wizard; to which he added the tag 'loser'. And if Heinrich Nachtigall and Erzebet Czerny were dead they were certainly losers.

Everilda was selfish, callous and hot tempered; but she was not yet someone who readily and freely embraced the Dark Arts as a matter of course. And the idea of the consequences of doing so frightened her enough that she intended to keep a VERY low profile!

oOoOo

Zhanargul was ready to set to work on the Great Hall for the Yule Ball; and she chose to take the suggestion Jade had made about decorating it, and had it swathed in silk with eastern carpets, exotic plants and cushions to recline in to eat the Christmas fare; and struck a balance between her own culture and an Arabian Nights feel. Her own robe was of the same Middle Eastern style of a bygone age, comfortable harem pants and short top; and she planned to wear bangles galore. Takeo had agreed to play along with baggy trousers and cummerbund and bolero top – and a plethora of warming charms – and Saula and her partner Stiv were to do likewise. Zlatka and Zlatko also would be in costume, and Zlatko's partner Desolina; and Zlatka chuckling to herself and hoping it would outrage her stuffy partner Adelard Löenzahn even more than any outrageous behaviour she was planning; especially as her costume was to be that of a goblin serving woman of the court Zhanargul was creating. And he would almost certainly realise it, since everyone had read the wizarding tales of Arabian Nights since they were traditional nursery tales.

The Eulenspiegels were still planning on coming as Nightingale the Robber and Baba Yaga; and Zhanargul, who had borrowed a Gramophone from Jade for the music, also borrowed a record of 'Pictures at an Exhibition' by Mussorgsky at Jade's suggestion, and knew no better when Jade lent her the version by Emerson, Lake and Palmer as well as the more traditional version arranged by Ravel. Rimsky-Korsakoff's 'Scheherazade' was also to be playing as occasional music; and 'Hungarian Dances' for the dancing.

The guests must enter through a low tunnel of fabric with the strains of 'The Young Prince and the Young Princess' from Scheherazade playing for added mystery, and illusions of Genii and Peri stood as guardians at the dais, one of them apparently issuing smokily from a battered old lamp.

And Takeo had transfigured a kitchen knife into a massive and wicked looking scimitar so he could scowl ferociously as the Princess Zhanargul's bodyguard. It was all very over the top. Especially the continual cascade of jasmine flowers that fell and vanished from the chanted-in summoning on the ceiling of the Hall as an exotic snowfall, filling the hall with their beautiful scent.

The girls all gasped with delight – even Everilda – and if the boys did not appreciate becoming redolent with the scent of Jasmine, Zlatko reminded them that a great muggle general of antiquity had worn jasmine flowers in his helmet so that if he fell on the field of battle he would at least smell sweet. The name Belisarius might have meant something to some of the pupils but somehow Zlatko doubted it. He read history for pleasure and had never taken any notice of Professor Fabeln, whom he thought a poor scholar; in Zlatko's mind about the worst insult he could give anyone. He intended to enter for a History ZH when he took a year at Prince Peak.

It was a most successful evening, even allowing for Adelard becoming sufficiently offended as to try to slap Zlatka, so that when he got up from her competent jujutsu slap down he was promptly floored by Zlatko for offering insult to his sister and Adelard apologised abjectly rather than agree to a duel with perhaps the most magically competent boy in the school.

Of course Zlatka considered driving the pompous boy to lose his cool as the highlight of the evening.

oOoOo

And then it was the end of term; and most people were going home.

And certain of the senior members of the blood group were to stay on a few days – and their parents told that there was an extra chanting exhibition which they were attending. Which in some respects was true; they were going to see chanting as none of them had ever seen it before.

The contingent who would actually be taking part in the twelve hour chant to remove the compulsion to self punish in elves were Cacilia, Volodya, Orlando Carcano, Zhanargul, Takeo and both sets of twins. The Asimov twins and Volodya were to be primary chanters who would hold the chant for the main eight hours; the others were secondary chanters who would either precede or take over from them. Each of the thirty six pairs of chanters would also have an elf to aid them and for symbolic reasons and a non-chanting helper too; and some of the non-chanting helpers were more than competent chanters but by reason of being elves, goblins or half goblins were being left out for paranoia's sake; that having been once servants of the Fey, there might be a way that the chant might fail. Clovis Gierek would also not be chanting; because he had volunteered to be the Sacrifice. Twelve drops of heart's blood from a human sacrifice must be taken from his living heart by an elf he had freed; and that was Tildi.

And unlike Lucius Malfoy, who had been the sacrifice when the ritual had been done in England, Clovis and Tildi both had the comfort of their bloodkin who would ease the pain and support Tildi. They must be careful not to do more than dull the agony to give Clovis the better chance of survival; otherwise it was not a true sacrifice. But they could aid Tildi. And if Dobby might be a little jealous that he had not been part of the Bloodgroup when he had taken the blood from Lucius he knew deep down that he had not at the time be ready. And Attila was to be the supporter of Cacilia and her primary, Traudl Mondschein; and Agata Bacsó was to be a general supporter.

Agata was taken aback to have Durmstrang chosen as a centre of power close to the absolute centre of the circle that was to be defined; and would never perhaps have cared one way or another if elves had a compulsion to self punish or not; but Severus Snape had explained that this probably was a means of feeding power to the fey who were of the level generally referred to as demons through the abject misery and distress of their relatives; and this had swayed Agata. Agata had learned enough about the fey from Jade to know that she hated and feared them; and accordingly threw open her doors willingly to the chanters to try to diminish their power. The demonologist Tulegen Nurtazin had been quite enough for her equanimity! And when a man as powerful as Severus Snape agreed with his daughter that tinkering with raising Great Form Spirits was plain crazy and even Voldemort had not been crazy enough to risk himself with that sort of lunacy it really made the blood run cold!

Sigismund and Zoltan were to stay in the castle to support their bloodkin by sharing fatigue; Zoltan had nowhere else to go anyway. Beremud and Bronislava would normally be taken to Neubrandenburg by Bronislava's brother Jaromir, but he too was coming in to be a secondary chanter. They were too to meet the offspring of other chanters; many of them other marauders.

They were also to meet Lilith Snape, who though no older than them was actually to be a primary chanter.

And it was diminutive, red haired Lilith who quickly introduced all the others before heading off with her secondary, Crysochorus Bass of the Broomstick boys, as well as one of the Russian elves who attended Prince Peak , and Percy Weasley.

Zhenga Rebet, three quarter goblin step daughter of Professor Ihor Rebet, was one of the Marauders in the first at Prince Peak, together with Fyra and Alrik, which pair Sigismund, Beremud and Bronislava knew; the other three marauders of their group had gone home for the holidays. Siegfried Snape Von Eiche was an adopted son of Severus Snape, and there was a girl called Johanna who was a recent marauder as a new girl in the third at Prince Peak, here with her sister who was to aid the chanters. She was one of the slightly older Marauders here with Yrdl, Vava and Hette Breuer, goblins sponsored by Anett Breuer who was a secondary chanter; and another youngster was Silvina Snape, herself a chanter. Her younger brothers Sevvy – a pure bred elf – and Tarquin were in the first in Hogwarts and had come with their father as supporters, though they declared themselves more as honorary marauders who took a supporting role together with their fellow, Candace Dumbledore; her older brother Seth being a full marauder. She, her little sister Phyllis, and Seth's friend Walter were supporting Albus Dumbledore; and it was a revelation that most of the most famous wizards in the world were actually going to be convening here after the chant!

Sigismund and Zoltan were to be among those giving power to Traudl Mondschein and Cacilia; as was Traudl's little sister Elfleda, the only one of the third year marauders to be staying in school. There were about three blooded to every chanting pair; and each was to attune to and feed power to whichever of the pair was chanting at any one time.

Severus Snape himself greeted Agata Bacsó warmly and set up a circle in the great hall in which to chant; which was on a large cloth painted with a complex pattern. Another cloth with a different pattern was spread out and Clovis Gierek and Tildi approached that.

"You aren't actually needed immediately so you may as well relax as much as possible" said Professor Snape in his harsh voice to the Giereks. Vissy had been left with other younger Snapes and other children in the care of elves brought from Prince Peak; nobody needed to worry about the care of their children. Zoltan volunteered their group to help play with babies; after all it would be good practice when Cacilia had babies.

And then they also got to meet Jade's adopted children, Ulvik, Zoltan's age, a goblin; Rainer a human boy of about nine, Rory, a goblin child and Lily a half goblin who were of an age with Jade's own baby Ralph. And Ulvik was a brother and a marauder too.

Race really did not matter.

They went to bed at the proper time, filling a couple of dormitories; and woke as one as the blood pulse of the mighty Professor Snape coursed through them all and the massive power of the chanting reverberated singing in their blood.

They had been told to sleep on as their strength would not be needed for a few hours; but Zoltan certainly could do no more than doze, almost sick with excitement at being a part of the biggest ritual ever known to have taken place; it was awesome!

And he was glad again that his father and his stepmother were both a part of this; it was something his real mother could never have comprehended. And Zoltan knew deep down with certainty that she would, if she owned an elf, actually like the idea of it self punishing.

They rose, and ate, and sat around feeding their strength to the chanters; it was too tiring to bother to do anything else. And all over Europe, blooded who had gone home were doing the same thing; and all of them were one with the chanters, one with the frighteningly competent figure of Professor Snape, chanting steadily in his harsh voice, pausing periodically to drum a complex measure on a big bodhran that reverberated about the hall.

And at noon they all crept in to support Professor Gierek as he drew back the robe from his chest; and the bodhran echoed the lub DUP! lub DUP! that was the synchronised hearbeat of almost two hundred hearts; and they all took from him a little of the aching agony as Tildi cut resolutely into his chest with the cutting spell, and then into his heart with the silver knife; and delivered the twelve drops of blood in a vial to the elf called Sirri who was one of Professor Snape's wives.

And they all joined too in the healing of him that Sirri managed almost casually; and then she was apparating away with it for the twelve key primary chanters who were to be marked with it while Professor Gierek downed a blood replenishing potion.

And then for the youngsters in Durmstrang the really frightening part was over; and they might help out Professor Snape too, who must chant the whole twelve hours, and his use of the drum proving how brilliant he was and how useful was music in magic; and Beremud, whose chosen music was percussion, thrilling to see how it could be used by a master.

It was a long day; but finally, with a note of triumph in his voice and a flamboyant flourish of his drumsticks Professor Snape pronounced the last phrase of the chant that sounded so horribly difficult; and sank to his knees. Sirri came over and took from his arm the hollow needle that had fed him fluid – apparently a muggle invention that worked well enough to use with magic – and kissed him tenderly as she handed him too a mug of throat easing potion.

And then people were apparating in from all over, weary people exclaiming, some of them, how much easier it had been for the muggle fluid making device; others saying that if this was easy all credit to the old hands who had done it before; and there was a lot of hugging and kissing of each other and of the children.

Attila and Cacilia and Agata all hugged the musical Marauders and so did the Twin Marauders and Elfleda and Traudl; and then there was a feast. And the children had the chance to meet and shyly shake the hands of such people as Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, David Fraser and even Harry Potter himself; and to stammer a pledge to do all they could to uphold marauding and fight evil and injustice wherever they might; and they learned another secret marauder recognition phrase when Herr Potter shook their hands and murmured

"May the Force be with you" which Harry did for something to say to young hero-worshippers and it seemed like a good idea at the time.

And Professor Dumbledore beckoned them all over, informed them that as he was no longer a headmaster he could follow his own inclinations and taught them the boogie-woogie bogey bugle hex.

And then they fell to on the feast.

The elves serving the feast, Durmstrang elves, would keep kissing the feet of the chanters; but apart from that it was a great feast and very replenishing.

At least the children thought so.

And though Lilith was too exhausted to join them they decided to celebrate being all marauders together by going off to explore Durmstrang's secret passages and camp out in them the way the musical marauders had already once done.

It sort of had to be done.

oOoOo

Zoltan was rather nervous of how he was to spend Christmas; though Sigismund was to come with him for the first part. Cacilia had written all about Attila and his obnoxious wife and the boys to her parents; and they were all invited for Christmas. Sigismund had been keen enough to meet Cacilia's parents; but had asked politely if he might not go home for most of Yule to his own adoptive parents and siblings since though he loved Attila very much, they WERE his real family.

And this both Attila and Cacilia respected him for; but it still left Zoltan feeling nervous.

The big schloss that was Cacilia's home added to this feeling; it was not quite as big as the castle of Durmstrang but it came close.

And then they were going inside, into the big entrance hall, to have elves whisk away their cloaks and bag, pausing to bow with profound respect to Cacilia, who had chanted for them; and Georg and Helga Von Freyer came forward to embrace Cacilia, shake Attila by the hand and then do the same for the boys.

"Sigismund! Zoltan! Good to meet you!" said Freiherr Von Freyer. "You are welcome to call us grandpapa and grandmama if you so choose; or Georg and Helga if you feel it too quick to take us as family."

"If you please sir" said Sigismund "As my blood father is Uncle Attila to me, might I add the same honorifics to you and your lady? And perhaps without a 'great' on them as is a little ageing."

Georg laughed.

"If that will make you comfortable, lad!" he said. "And I like your loyalty to your adoptive parents too; loyalty is one of the best qualities in the world."

"It is loyalty to my brother that makes me come this time instead of asking if I might meet you at a future date; because it is always a little scary meeting new relatives" said Sigismund, dropping an arm round Zoltan's shoulder.

"I should like a grandmama and grandpapa if you truly wish to welcome me as such" said Zoltan. "I never met my real mother's parents and I barely recall papa's."

"Your mother was an orphan ward of an aunt who was happy to get her married off; and I quarrelled with my parents over arranging something without my knowledge" said Attila "I took you to see them with Nora when you were quite young but the atmosphere was chilly and she refused point blank to go again or let me take you. I should write to them" he sighed "And see if we would be welcome visitors."

"It's an unreasonable parent that will not make his or her own offspring and their children welcome" said Georg "Especially when they have been the one to cause a rift through well-intentioned idiocy; but it is often hard for people to admit faults and thus to blame their absent child. I certainly hope that a reconciliation is possible; and if you wish, I will always be ready to stand by as a negotiator."

"Thank you Georg" said Attila.

"And I want a hug from my new grandson and great nephew" said Helga. "This great pile should be filled with children and I hope either or both of you will feel free to spend long parts of the holidays with us and bring all your friends; we have a few family ghosts, a couple of secret stairways and plenty of room to play in inside and out."

"And when we have brothers and sisters, they can grow up here!" said Zoltan happily. "Oh it IS nice to have family that really is family, just like the Snapes!"

oOoOo

Sigismund was collected by Agata to go home after a slap up supper; and Zoltan reflected how strange it was going to be to sleep all alone in a room again.

He had a room all of his own that had been decorated for him, with a frieze of musical notes that was Brahms' lullaby; and a spare cello stood in the corner by a music stand. Mother Cacilia had obviously told them that blue was his favourite colour because all the bedclothes and curtains and carpet were in periwinkle blue, navy and cream, with touches of beige to set it off. He was quite speechless for a moment; then he flung himself on his new grandmama and hugged her.

"There now!" said Helga "We wanted to let you know that you were as welcome as your father; and perhaps to make up for the fact that the first son our daughter has will be heir to all this and to the title. And that such should not mean we will love our stepgrandchildren the less; for Cacilia has picked you to be her son, and Sigismund as a nephew by courtesy; and you don't often get the opportunity to pick your relatives!"

Zoltan leaned. Somehow with a grandmother it was all right to be rather little boyish.

"I guess I did a better job of picking my stepmama than nature did of picking my mother" he said.

"Ah, a conspiracy was it?" laughed Helga.

"Well, Sigismund and I sort of poked them along" said Zoltan. "Though they didn't need much poking. Only they did need us to approve at them I guess; so we approved. I hope papa's divorce comes through soon; then I shall feel free of her totally. It's not a nice feeling to be a pawn."

"My poor child, I should think not!" said Helga. "And if you ask me, any educated woman who has a marriage arranged for her that she dislikes who does not show her disapproval by refusing to show for the ceremony is a poor creature; but has not, even so, any right to take it out on an innocent child. Well, I know all about it, for Cacilia has written to me the whole; so if you want to talk, I shall listen; and if you wish to put it behind you, I will not ask questions."

"Thank you grandmama" said Zoltan gravely. "I think I wish to put it behind me; otherwise she is still hurting me and then she has won. I have a new family and a new start; and so does papa."

Helga hugged him again; he was such a dear solemn little boy!

And how she would have loved to have had a son as well as her dear daughter!

oOoOo

Zoltan had never had a family Christmas; last year had come close with Papa home, and taking him out; but it had been rather subdued with his mother telling papa off for making a noise and encouraging the child to act like a hooligan.

He usually had a bag of presents to open in his room where he was supposed to stay until breakfast time as a general thing, and he and his mother would go out to a restaurant to eat turkey for dinner and then he must go to his room to play quietly while she listened to the Christmas broadcasts on Wizarding Wireless .

And they had never had decorations because they got too dusty; and if they had he was certain they would have been bought ones, not greenery cut from the trees with Grandpapa and papa and Mama-Cacilia; with papa using a hovering charm on the sharp billhook to cut down some mistletoe, and then cutting strips of coloured paper to make paper chains to hang up, and bells made of baking foil shaped on lemon squeezers! They were hung on the big pine tree that grandpapa and papa lifted with digging spells and used _mobiloarbus_ to bring back and set in a huge pot in the big dining room. And they all stirred a big pudding and made a wish; and Zoltan wished for a big family and that Grandpapa and Grandmama and mama-Cacilia would love him and papa forever.

And instead of having presents piled at the end of his bed when he was tucked down on Christmas Eve, he was given a stocking to hang on the end of the bed; and Grandmama said

"We're getting to the age when we don't want to be jumped on before half past six to be wished merry Christmas; bless the child, I never saw such a confused face! Do you not leap on all the adults in the house to wish them merry Christmas as soon as you wake up?"

"No ma'am" said Zoltan "It would have given mama – my mother – a headache and she would probably have had to leave me to fix my own meals all day instead of going out for dinner."

"Going OUT for Christmas dinner? You did not help her fix the goose and all the trimmings?" Helga was flabbergasted. "I know not everyone makes a pudding anymore but it is such fun to stir and wish so we have always done so for Cacilia even after she grew up! Why, the stocking is just to keep you going until the rest of us want to wake up; and we have the proper presents under the tree after breakfast!"

"So I may come and say good morning not stay in my room until I am called for breakfast?" said Zoltan.

"Is THAT why you didn't emerge last year?" said Attila "Because it was not allowed? Had I known I'd have come to you and suggested an early morning walk together in the snow! Mama Helga, Papa Georg, we must give Zoltan a really good family Christmas."

"We will" said Georg. "And if you don't rise to wish US merry Christmas my boy, I shall get out a tin trumpet and come and rouse you!"

"I'll never hear the last about that tin trumpet" said Cacilia "I was all of four; and I woke up and opened my stocking and there was this lovely goblin-made tin trumpet that had three notes on it; and I was so happy I ran to show mama and papa what a beautiful noise it made; and then found out that it was not quite half past four."

"We got up anyway and had a cup of coffee and some rolls and honey and put her – and ourselves – to bed when she fell asleep just after lunch" said Helga. "It must have been the first year she was old enough to really understand Christmas and be so excited she woke early. Tell you what, young Zoltan, we'll put the time back to six o'clock so long as you bring us coffee in bed; because the elves have Christmas day off. We do all the cooking ourselves; and it's all part of the fun."

"That's nice" said Zoltan. "All right; I can make coffee very well. I always made coffee before with her."

"Good lad" said Attila.

oOoOo

Zoltan woke wondering why he felt excited; and then remembered – it was Christmas day! And it was not yet six o'clock so he went to see if there was anything that had mysteriously got into his stocking.

It was full of bulges!

He started delving.

There was an action figure of Harry Potter; and a clockwork singing bird; and a snowstorm with figures of unicorns moving in it; and a bag of nuts and a bag of toffee!

And right at the bottom was a tiny, perfectly made cello, enchanted to play one of a number of tunes.

Who could be luckier!

And now it was just on six o'clock so he put on a dressing gown to go down and make coffee for the four grown ups and poured himself a mug of milk; and went to knock politely on the door of Georg and Helga's room.

"Herein!" called Georg; so he entered.

"Merry Christmas Grandmama, Grandpapa" he said "If I leave your coffee I can take Papa's and mama-Cacilia theirs on the tray."

"Merry Christmas Zoltan!" boomed Georg; and his wife echoed the comment, thanking him for the coffee; and when he had quietly withdrawn to take coffee to Attila and Cacilia she said,

"Well! I did wonder if Cacilia had exaggerated about that wicked woman, taking her lover's point of view; but if I ever see Nora Nagy I'm going to strangle her! Whoever heard of a child who wasn't even boisterous on Christmas day?"

"Oh I'm sure we'll cure him of it" said Georg. "Poor little lad!"

oOoOo

Cacilia had taken Zoltan shopping to get presents for her parents; and had taken him too into muggle shops to buy them muggle gadgets for fun; and when they unwrapped their presents after breakfast, Georg was absolutely delighted with his Swiss army knife and Helga with her fold-away scissors and miniature mending kit.

"You have to hand it to muggles, they are remarkably ingenious!" said Georg, playing with the blades.

Zoltan had bought his father the new book on chanting by Professor Snape because he knew he wanted it; and he had bought Cacilia a spoof book of dark creatures and the best way to cook them; because, as he said gravely, he recalled her losing an argument with papa over not knowing enough about the dark arts.

Cacilia loved it; it was a very witty book and included a picture of Prince Gerhardt Grindelwald hung up with the cuts of meat marked on him while the picture twisted and grunted and oinked.

And Zoltan had his own broom; a Schnellstfluger 07; the best broom in Europe bar the English Firebolt! And there were story books too, tales of adventure; and a pocket cauldron kit.

"For those illicit marauding potioneering moments" said Cacilia "It's new out of England; the cauldron expands, and the stirrer can also be a silver knife or a set of scales as you require. It's manufactured by a couple of English Hogwarts students – marauders I believe – using goblin metalworking techniques and it's one of the most useful pieces of kit I've ever seen because it reduces, as you can see, to pocket size."

"Oh HOW I love everyone and how good you all are to me!" said Zoltan. "And what lovely gifts; but OH! How much nicer than getting gifts it is to sit and open them all together!"

It was the best Christmas of his life!


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The happy holiday was interrupted by a momentary panic of fear and pain from fellow marauders, not marauders that Zoltan knew, but it was magnified by Alrik, Fyra and Zhenga, who he did know; but they were calm, they were dealing with it; there was no real need to panic. There was a hurried feeling of babies being blooded; Zoltan helped as best he could in dissipating some poison; then two adult feeling people joined and everything was good.

"Interesting" said Cacilia "As far as I can judge that, Eduard Von Frettchen's grotty nephew just tried to murder him, his wife and their twin sons; and as HER brother is a Marauder it means Severus got there in time. Well we're not needed, I pulsed a request to ask; I expect I'll find out more. I'll write to Jade, she always knows what's going on."

"I just got a confused feeling of pain, fear, then calm" said Attila.

"Oh, sorting out what's happening takes practice" said Cacilia "I've been blooded in for well over a year so I've learned to pick up a lot; even if I'm not as good at shielding as some" she flushed slightly. "Also Jade was peripherally involved and she's one I'm close to so I can pick up more."

"This then is an example of how this blood group can aid each other? Intervening in the case of poisoning and brewing an antidote in time?" asked Georg.

"It's more than that, papa" said Cacilia "We three helped dissipate the effects of the poison; when it's spread over so many people it just is that easy – once they're blooded in. I felt Severus blood in others to save them, a potion might have killed the babies. The kids Zoltan's age we could all just clear easily. Zoltan need never really fear kidnap because wherever anyone took him, his bloodkin could find him, clear any drug that kept him quiescent from his system and because we have elves as our kindred too use their unique style of apportation to rescue him; do a controlled focussed vanishing spell by ritual from a distance if need be."

"I was about to say 'that's impossible'" said Attila "But with this blood magic I'm not sure if anything is impossible!"

Cacilia laughed.

"Violating the laws of the universe is impossible" she said "But a controlled focussed vanishing spell relies normally on you seeing the object and knowing the place you're going to send it – even if that's only by Arithmancy. I know THAT much higher transfiguration! But with the blood link it's as certain as seeing an object in front of you where the person to be vanished is, and you know where you are so…" she shrugged. "It's not risky in the same was as doing it to a person you're not blood joined to would be, even if you could see them; because it's more akin to apparating yourself because you FEEL the person you're vanishing. And arithmantically speaking there's no difference between the various vanishing spells and apportation; not in the basic equations. Only in the detail. And because it's more akin to elf style apportation you don't get to worry about anti apparating zones."

Attila rubbed the back of his head in consternation.

"I have a lot to learn about the misuse of my own subject the blood group gets up to" he said ruefully "You told your parents about the group I surmise?"

"Yes; I don't have secrets from my parents; we have too good a relationship" said Cacilia. "They know the history of it; and how the blood group defeated Odessa and involved us."

"We are proud of our daughter to be a part of something so profound and dedicated" said Georg "And as I understand it, your children will now be born a part of it?"

"I don't know Georg" said Attila.

"They will" said Cacilia.

"WIZARD!" said Zoltan.

oOoOo

Meanwhile Clovis Gierek was a little too busy to take account of the small worries of marauders who already had adequate support; as Lucius had predicted he was becoming the focus for a wide range of fey who had been freed, like the house elves, of the compulsion to hurt themselves if disloyal in thought to their high fey masters. Warned in advance, Clovis had set up an enclave within the magical forest near Durmstrang wherein he and Tildi worked, with the aid of other bloodkin, to fuse some of the tallest trees on a small eminence and transfigure them to stone, delving too into the rocks to make more chambers below, to make a tower that was both a small city and yet somehow organic. Family places were built within it, public areas and communal eating places – the fey being gregarious – with gargoyles running water from permanent water summoning charms and drains that led deep underground and carried too the sewage that would be an inevitable part of such a small city. Kreacher and Polly were to be king and queen while the new fey settled in, fantastically powerful from the point of view of most fey, ready to teach them how to be clean and civilised as they would almost certainly have little idea of how to do, for the most part, since ragged dirty clothes were commonly covered by glamour. There were workshops in the city where clever fey fingers might weave and sew, forge and carve; and one of the lessons of being free would be in how to work for pay and keep, not steal or confund. It was the condition of living free under the protection of the Sacrifice; even as Lucius had imposed law and order on the fey and free elves who flocked to HIS mansion. Dobby kept them in order on the whole; they had a council in imitation of that of the English wizarding world on which he sat as an advisor; and one day, Lucius swore that they would have a member on the main council – once they had learned enough. It would take at least a whole generation; but it would happen. It was six years on from the time of the ritual that had removed the compulsion from English elves and fey; and next year some of those fey who had been brought as small children by their mothers, to grow up in freedom, would go to Hogwarts, having been exposed to the younger offspring of Lucius and taught by example. As some of the fey anticipated in the tower would grow up with Polly and Kreature's children.

And when they started arriving at Durmstrang castle to kiss Clovis' feet – the anti-fey line having been modified to permit those fey without hostile intent in, though without powers of residence to be able to invite in other more inimical creatures – Clovis led them to the tower, settled them in, and had them swear an oath of obedience to the rules.

There were free house elves too; those freed by line death, not a few because of the actions of various of the Blooded against either Odessa or the dark wizards slain this very year by Zhanargul's team, many of them Hungarian; and those freed as punishment for real or imagined offences. Clovis had learned legilimensy; and he searched for motives. And some he turned away as being free-loaders with enough resentment to try to cause trouble. If they tried to turn up anyway, Kreacher would give them short shrift; the free elf had no time for disloyalty. He could see now more shades of grey in actions than hitherto but he would not tolerate troublemakers. And Clovis used the blood-link to give the wily elf pictures of those who were suspect. He rejected too those fey who only wanted to build a kingdom for themselves now they were free to buck the authority of the High Fey; who had taken out their frustrated feelings of not being permitted disloyalty in the displacement activity of bullying those weaker than themselves; and who now saw opportunity to make themselves top of the heap of the lesser fey. Such would not fit into a community of free fey.

The aim, ultimately, was to train them all over successive generations, to live freely amongst humans and goblins; of course having humans and goblins living freely together had to be achieved first. Jade's school was a primary step in this direction; the purchase of houses in wealthy wizarding neighbourhoods by the human half of mixed race couples would be next; and gradually there would be, one hoped, growing tolerance. Trying to introduce the wild, even feral, natures of the raggedy-arsed fey into mainstream society would put any other form of tolerance back decades; it was unthinkable, unworkably; crazy even. They had to learn to return to a way of life that was lost in the mists of antiquity, when the fey had been revered as wise even if feared for being capricious; but they had lived lifestyles not unlike those of humans, before fear of magic had increasingly driven them into isolated raths and caves and strongholds where they degenerated socially. One could not compare even a self styled high fey king of the modern era with the beautiful and knowledgeable Calypso, mostly fey and possibly part human witch who bore two children to the semi mythical hero Odysseus, and founded a great line of Greek wizards. And even then the fey were in decline, inclined to seek solitary locations, and called nymphs by the ancients. Clovis had never studied Ancient Runes, but it was easy to pick up a lot of trivia from Jade who read ancient Greek texts for pleasure.

However, once goblins were accepted, moving taller fey and half elves in would be easier. And some of the fey counted as underlings and low fey were almost as tall and beautiful as their highfey relatives; marred perhaps – in the eyes of the rulers – by such things as blue legs; or tails; or even cloven hooves. The forms of some of the fey were sufficiently tenuous that such manifestations were a part of the semi-complete transfiguration from pure spirit to a body; most fey in England, Lucius had told him, had more substance because there was more human in their lines, save in the oldest; and the oldest were often given respect regardless of appearance. In Europe, though some fey had managed to achieve a set form – the Veeli for example, and the Duende, who were essentially Leprechauns, Leshy, Huldravolk, Dames Blanche, Shishigi and so on – some had scorned to do so and were thus wildly variant in form. It was notable that those who had managed to set a form did NOT come calling; they had no need of a stratified society with slaves; they were happy in the acceptance of who they were and what they were. And as such, compulsions did not apply to them. Though in some respects these folk had helped make up the variant forms; half breeds added substance to the Wild Fey as one might truly call them. The different colours must have been in their makeup anyway to become set in some species – the green of leprechauns and duende, the green tinge of Leshy, shishigi, wood nymphs and dryads, the blue in pixies, a degenerate form but still of the fey, and the various browns and olives of some of the wood nymph sub groups. It was too a fey thing that led to the birth, in most cases, of only females in many of these set forms; a factor shared by hags who were themselves of the fey. Jade had said that it was possible, as a conscious act of will, for a hag at least to conceive a male child, but that it was hard; and usual only in a second generation nymph or dryad reared as a human in that there was some cultural influence within that she did not – as yet – understand.

Doubtless, being Jade, she would find out some day!

And so the fey and elves came; and were given quarters; and gently bullied by Polly and Kreacher into finding themselves a niche; and the free Hungarian elves of the now virtually extinct Czerny family and its many branches would help to stabilise a form for future generations; and the elves who had accompanied their masters to the conference of dark wizards were invited back to help to run the community; because elves at least knew about the trappings of civilisation, and many had family who had been left bereft of line in Hungary; and who now had a central point to come to. And Clovis told them to fetch any others that they may; and proceeded to discover the one half elf born, killing his mother, through the abuses of one or other of the family; whereupon Clovis told him to give clothes to any elf he was in any way related to, that was still tied to any human and bring them here; and the youth grinned savagely and went off to do just that. The unpleasant Zsombor Czerny would no longer have any elves to torture; he would have to grow up in an orphanage, and THAT ought to modify his belief that he could have it all his own way. Clovis also suggested to the now free elves that if there were any small children of the Czerny family who were not unpleasant, bringing THEM here to raise in the elf community might not be such a bad idea either; where they would be raised by the elven nurses they had, if they were young enough, not yet learned to despise and merely loved, as small children love the one who lavishes care on them. They might go to school in Jade's school as might the children of the fey; and that too would help. For the fey brought their offspring; and some were pregnant; and there were elven babies too, and Kreacher busy finding out who had babies who had been sold to try to acquire them with such funds as were available for such; which made him beloved of the elves for trying, and would seal their adoration of him when he started succeeding. And Kreacher took the half human boy as his ward to train up to lead the community someday.

Kreacher passed on to Clovis that the Hungarian elves had also brought back a mistress, as they still called her, the cowed bride of one of the Czerny males, who brought all her children to be protected. The half human boy Zaly was the half brother of her children; he would protect them. And Kreacher and Polly had every intention of bringing the boy on far enough to go to school in Jade's school next year to pave the way for other elves in the future; and the woman Aurelia clung to Polly as a strong support, since Polly was herself heavily pregnant and Aurelia had not long birthed the youngest of her children. And Polly gently bullied her too and took over much of the rearing of the three children ranging from a three and a half year old daughter downward.

And Clovis HOPED the free wild fey would manage to stop arriving before term began again!

oOoOo

Various Marauders met up at the lodge.

"Excitable sort of holiday or what?" said Beremud laconically "Attacks on somebody; Professor Gierek getting almost apoplectic from – I presume – being knee deep in elves and stuff, and all that after the big chant that should have been enough excitement to keep most people going all year!"

"I can't wait to find out what happened!" said Beryx, his nose all but twitching "It positively HURTS knowing some stuff and not being able to uncover all!"

"Mother Cacilia got some stuff from Jade Von Luytens and wrote to demand more details" said Zoltan "And I had the presence of mind to write to Ulvik too."

"Spill then, brother of mine" demanded Sigismund.

"In order and without leaving anything out" added Bronislava.

"Or we poke you" said Lindhard.

"Hard" said Corneliu.

Zoltan laughed.

"There is a boy who is the nephew of Herzog Eduard Von Frettchen who was expelled, as I am told, last year for trying to poison his new aunt to stop her having a baby to supplant him as heir; well he convinced his parents to visit with him so he could, supposedly, apologise; and he poisoned them all. His parents, the duke, his wife and their twin baby sons, her parents and brother and her brother's friend. And those boys are also marauders so we touched through them and were able to help – let me tell it my way Bronny or I shan't tell it at all – and because they're at Prince Peak, Severus Snape himself and sundry Peak Marauders went and Professor Snape blooded right away with the babies whilst chanting to hold the effect of the poison so it couldn't spread as demonically fast as it's supposed to; and he cleared the babes while the other marauders of Wilhelm's and Serrik's group cleared THEM, and then they started brewing a potion when Jade Von Luytens arrived with Ulvik – he has a group of marauders but not blooded yet – just to check. So Professor Snape blooded in Duke Eduard and Duchess Ann because it seemed like a good idea and cured the others with the potion while sundry older marauders practised jinxes on the horrid youth who had done it."

"What's to HAPPEN to him? Is he going to Nurmengard? Did the Duke execute him? Or was he let off so they didn't have to tell anyone?" demanded Beryx.

"DO have patience. Indeed I shall make you" said Zoltan and started humming to himself, hands in pockets, staring into the middle distance.

When he had managed to escape from the green, pustuled, tickled ball and retrieved his ears and eyebrows and blown the last purple bat into his handkerchief he said, with dignity,

"If you oiks think that manhandling me is going to get you anywhere you can jolly well think again; it's the wrong sort of magic to get me to talk."

"Please?" said Bronislava "PRETTY please with icing on?"

"THAT will work" said Zoltan. "Apparently it's something Baronin Von Luytens had suggested to the Duke if his nephew SHOULD ever step out of line again – she had the idea right back when he first was expelled and I will tell it in order in my own way so stop grimacing like toads on alihotsy" he said as sundry of his fellow marauders were trying to make him tell the tale to their own satisfaction. "Ignaz Von Frettchen was given the choice of Nurmengard or being returned to babyhood."

"Crumbs, if that's possible I'd rather have Nurmengard" said Beremud.

"Yeah, well, that's because you've got more than two brain cells to rub together" said Lindhard "I take it the fool chose babyhood? And never thought through the implications?"

"Looking at all of you nodding I can see we're all brighter than the baby called Ignaz" said Zoltan "Professor Snape chanted and used Finnish naming magic; and made him the precise same age as the twins. And the duke's going to bring him up this time with his own infants, not let his cabbage-headed sister-in-law spoil him again. So with the blank canvas of an infant mind he gets to grow up to be a potential marauder not a sad jealous little git; because he and the younger twin will always be aware that the older one is the heir and it'll just be the way it is. And I wouldn't mind betting that Professor Snape put in a few twists to make him partly the son of the duchess so that if they tweak it that way, to be identical, it'll not be long before people talk about the Von Frettchen triplets. And boy are THEY going to have mileage out of that when they hit school!"

"Whoh yes!" whistled Sigismund. There was a long and wistful moment of contemplation of all the things they might have done if they had only had triplets within their group. Triplets were just MADE to set up alibis!

Or drive insane those who did not know of the plurality of the children.

"We should actually write to Wilhelm and suggest that if Professor Snape didn't think of it, he and Serrik ought to" said Beryx "And by the way, talking about brothers, how are we going to hoist one of our dorm mates out to include Zoltan?"

"We suggest hard to the other Russians in the year that they invite Pyotr to dorm with them" said Lindhard "It'll take a touch of subtle control but I think we're ready to practise that; it's no good finding stuff accidentally in the library if you don't use it."

"It isn't dark magic to actually manipulate people like that is it?" asked Beremud.

"Technically yes, but also technically no" said Lindhard "On the principle that dark magic is defined by intent; and our intentions are not inimical to either Pyotr or the other Russians. If they were we'd palm of that idiot Ernst onto them; he may have become mostly harmless but he's still a prig's prig."

"Right; let's go to work on the Russians when they arrive then" said Corneliu.

They did; with a smoothness of touch that would have made Tom Riddle blink and look to his laurels. None of the Russian boys in the second year had any inkling that they had had a job done on them, only that they had an urge to invite their countryman to join them in a predominantly German dormitory to help them sing the songs of home. And Pyotr gladly accepted without any prompting; he considered the greater number of his dormitory mates to be insane and was glad to get away!

oOoOo

The journey to the castle was marked by gasps as those looking out of the window saw the new tower; and many were the questions that were asked.

The children were not the only ones to be thus taken aback and puzzled; the villagers had sent a deputation to ask Agata Bacsó about it; and as neither she nor the majority of the staff had any idea she had waited until all her staff assembled before asking them if anyone knew about it.

"It's mine" said Clovis "Well, that's to say I and sundry others put it there; I really did NOT think, Agata, that you'd want a wild bunch of raggedy arse fey arriving and living actually in the castle."

"But why should they?" demanded an irritable Helois Fabeln.

"Because I took part in a risky ceremony to free them from the compulsions to obey their more powerful relatives, Helois; which ultimately will make us all a lot safer" said Clovis "And I volunteered to be the blood sacrifice so they seek me out because they feel my blood. Quite simple. So I got in some help to put up the tower so I know where the little buggers are, and I got in a couple of free elves I know to run the place and teach them how to BE free with all the implications of responsibility as well as rights that such implies. You can't undertake a ritual without following through all the consequences; and in time they'll learn to be guardians of the school too."

"Quite" said Agata. "What am I to tell the villagers?"

Clovis shrugged.

"Tell them that you're not responsible to say yay or nay to any magical denizens of the forest but that the fey who have moved in are bound to the school by oath not to make trouble in school or village. Which is true."

"You think of everything!" said Agata, relieved.

"I do my best" Clovis bowed.

"I think it is most presumptuous of you to undertake any such ritual without consulting the headmistress!" cried Madam Fabeln.

"Heloise, I think you are rather presumptuous to assume that I did not know" said Agata coldly "I fully supported the ritual, all who took part in it, and those who helped out in any capacity. Clovis was not the only member of the staff involved; he was merely a particular focus as the volunteer to sacrifice blood which was needful to break a less benign blood ritual that tied the lesser fey to their masters by something akin to the Imperious Curse. I was happy to give the use of the castle during the holiday, and indeed to remain to assist, for the group involved, and most proud that some of my staff had been chosen to be a part of it. Clovis thought things through further than me; but then he knows more about the fey than I do" she added.

"It is ridiculous! I am a more senior member of staff than that boy, why was I not asked to be a part of it? I should have refused of course but I should have been asked!" said Fabeln.

"Because, you silly old moo, apart from the fact that you WOULD 'of course' have said no, as anyone who knows you would know that you would, you're totally useless because you only teach because you can't do anything else and you stick to a subject that doesn't actually need you to prove that you can even cast spells" said Attila.

"Tact. Or not" said Cacilia.

"Be as tolerant as you like, Cacilia; you haven't spent as many years in the same staff room as this old toad* as I have; nor listened to her foolishness as often. She complains for the sake of complaining and moreover tries to find ways to make others seem at fault or inadequate because she is so inadequate a person herself that by trying to make others seem less she has some mistaken idea that she makes herself seem greater; not realising that the rest of us see through her spite-filled ploys and laugh at her. But we did not, those of us who were part of it, go through a twelve hour ritual at personal discomfort to have someone with so little idea of even common magic, let alone higher magic gripe at it; as well might a muggle refuse, of course, to accept a place in Durmstrang, as if anyone would offer it to one who could not, let alone would not, grasp its significance. You should realise, Heloise, that your understanding of what was done was on a par with the understanding of a muggle over what is done at a school for wizards and witches. And most of us barely understood more than about half of it; and were proud to be a part of it for what little we did understand. I'm sorry Agata, but she gets my goat."

"Do tell" said Agata dryly "Orlando, we do not need your unvarnished opinion in addition, rumbling approval towards Attila deep in your chest gave us it well enough thank you."

"I have already expressed my opinion to Heloise; she knows it well enough" said Orlando Carcano. "And actually she has less concept of what goes on than Kathleen my muggle wife who understands in principle what she cannot do in fact; because Kathleen has a brain and also knows how to exercise it."

"That is it! I'm not staying here to be insulted any longer; I resign!" said Professor Fabeln.

Agata sighed.

"If you must, Heloise" she said. "I will ask Lazlo Ijas to step into the breach for the rest of the year. I believe he's only chasing down loose dark wizards of a relatively minor nature. Cacilia, have you any news of him, my dear?"

"Last I heard he's attached himself to the royal household of Kazakhstan" said Cacilia "Mopping up the adherents of Uncle Tootles, whose real name I'm afraid I've forgotten."

Attila laughed.

"So perish the memory of Tulegen Nurtazin" he said.

Heloise Fabeln burst into angry tears and fled; she had expected her resignation to be met with a refusal and soothing words; that she was to be replaced by one of her own pupils was intolerable!

But she had little choice but to tolerate it.

oOoOo

Agata welcomed the school back after the Yule break and mentioned in passing that if any of them had noticed the new tower they should not be either concerned nor yet too inquisitive since it was the domain of a group of fey who had sworn oaths of mutual benefit with the school but who would probably take steps against the intruders which would be unpleasant to any so impolite as to pry. She handed them over to Clovis as Herr Professor Gierek was their greatest expert on the fey.

"Which I fear is not saying a lot" said Clovis. "I do know that they can be a capricious lot with an even more warped sense of humour than any marauder and you're likely to be sent away with your feet on backwards and the head of an ass and that's if you don't irritate them too much. They have sworn not to hurt the children of the school; which means anyone UP to the age of seventeen. And it does NOT cover doing something amusing to those who annoy. You are warned."

"As he says" said Agata dryly "Those of you studying history of magic will be wondering why Professor Fabeln is not at the table; she has sent her resignation for personal reasons and the rest of this year will be taken by Professor Ijas who has stepped in at short notice."

The short notice was about six hours; but Lazlo just grinned. It would be both sweet and hard to be teaching so near to Zhanargul; but he had at least her father's permission to formally court her when she left school. And as she was to do a year at Prince Peak, there would be no hardship doing another year teaching in Durmstrang to give Agata every opportunity to find a suitable replacement. He rose.

"Some of you recall me from school; I DO hope you won't tell the lower school anything too reprehensible about me" he said. "I'm looking forward to sharing what I've learned since I left school, that there is a lot more to history than lists of dates and that those who don't read history are doomed to repeat it. I'd like you all to think hard on the different levels you should all be at in order to address a debate we'll be having as the first lesson in each class on 'why Gerhardt Grindelwald was a complete prat'; try to muster cogent arguments and parallels in history. If you're all prepped up we should have a lot of fun."

"Be a first, history being fun" murmured Sigismund to his group.

"It is when Zlatko explains it" said Beremud.

"And" interposed Lazlo "For those of you reflecting that Zlatko can make history live, you do him the credit of recognising his enthusiasm and recognition of the true importance and meaning of historical facts. Only by examining WHY events happen can one ever predict in the future WHAT will happen. I beg your pardon Madam Bacsó; overcome by enthusiasm."

"Oh I am always happy to have staff who are enthusiastic about their subject" said Agata. "I believe I might invite myself to the more senior debates if you don't mind; it does sound fascinating."

"And welcome!" said Lazlo.

The lower school, for whom history was a compulsory subject, brightened considerably; nobody liked Frau Fabeln, not because she was in any way a cruel disciplinarian – though her discipline was, as Sigismund complained rather erratic – but because she was so boring! Her homework was always left to last and frequently skimped; because if enough people skimped she did not do anything about it bar shout at them; it was only if there were one or two who skimped that she was likely to set a massive detention of five hundred lines; or if someone she disliked dropped below a mark she chose arbitrarily to cover THEM – and any other unfortunate below that mark, unless it was a favourite who would get told that as they were trying hard they need not take a detention. Consequently all the school despised her because she was blatantly unfair, weak and unable to teach. Almost anyone had to be better; and the marauders at least could feel that Lazlo was one of the Blooded and therefore probably an interesting person to start off with. Besides, as Sigismund said, he had been seen in the castle when Jade Von Luytens' class of dark arts students were chasing liches which meant he almost had to be dead hard and cool.

And what perhaps was of greater interest to the Musical Marauders was that Adolph Zollschlange of the fifth had returned to school with a red nose, and still sneezing being mostly over fairy flu but not fully because as it was his ZP year he did not want to miss any schooling.

There would be bound to be a few hypochondriacs with snuffles who were convinced they had caught fairy flu from him; so they were all set to put into action the planning they had done back in September in the lodge; and hands were rubbed, grins were grinned, and evil chuckles were chuckled evilly.

* kröte, toad, in German is also indicative of a spiteful person.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Lessons were quickly settled down to, and the new term was off with a swing; and it may be said that the plotters in the second were diverted by the debate on what made Gerhardt a prat. Other than, as Sigismund volunteered, seriously underestimating the English.

"And could he have taken an example from history of anyone else who underestimated the English? Zoltan?"

"Two of them sir; Voldemort and Gerhardt's own grandfather, who was altogether more powerful and cleverer than Gerhardt but still got nabbed by Professor Dumbledore."

"Indeed. The mistake that Gerhardt made concerning Dumbledore was that of indulging in wishful thinking, encouraged by sycophants, that Dumbledore was senile and incapable; that he had lost his powers through fighting Voldemort and his much published so-called death" said Lazlo "And that he was then a figurehead. With Voldemort dead however, why was that so obviously a false assumption? Ah….Zdena, isn't it?"

Zdena Masicwicza beamed at him.

"Sir, it was because Dumbledore is not the sort of man to accept being a figurehead unless it was necessary to fool people; and with Voldemort dead, and Harry Potter an adult and in no more need of protection, he could have and would have quietly resigned, probably in favour of Herr Professor Snape before the matter of the school in Austria arose."

"Quite so" said Lazlo "Studying PEOPLE is far more important than studying dates; knowing why they take the actions they do. Gerhardt was muddy in his thinking, and had suffered the disadvantage of being reared in the belief that he was something special and able to conquer all opposition; and he WAS powerful magically in some respects, enough to make most of his adherents want to propitiate him and go along with his false view of the world. Which was as simple as the idea that because he wanted something to be so, it would be so. And he is not the first would-be dictator to think that and I doubt he'll be the last because such small people study the dark arts, not history. I want you for homework to see how many of such you can come up with who ignored facts for their own convenience. I don't need an essay, a list with a sentence or two about each will suffice. And I don't mind if you include muggle dictators and kings either; it's the personality that counts more than the ability to use magic. I think you'll be surprised how many, as a class, you manage to find. You may also work in groups and present me with a group list if you wish; I'm interested in getting you thinking, not in whether that is solitary or in debate."

The second voted Herr Ijas more or less the works.

oOoOo

There was some talk about Zoltan having joined the second; his former dormitory mates were slightly hurt that he was moving out.

"Why, you've learned to stand together; you don't need me to lead any more" said Zoltan "And actually it's best for you not to get lazy and rely on me leading you. It doesn't mean you're not still my friends; but I particularly wanted to be with my half brother. I guess you can understand that! And if you ARE in trouble you know, you can always call on us marauders to help out. And I have a task for you; to be nice to Zahid Malik and see if you can't make him into a decent human being now he's not under the influence of Zsombor Czerny any more. 'Cos I reckon he's aggressive because he's from so far away he wants to get his retaliation in first. Felicks, Herman, you're the intelligencers; you find out all about him and if he needs encouragement and protection he can then have my old bed and you can bring him in as an ally."

"If you think we can" said Felicks, doubtfully "I guess to be with your brother it makes sense. Who IS your brother?"

"Sigismund Tóth" said Zoltan. "It's a long story; but he has adoptive parents too and a brother and sister by adoption; but I guess I can sort of adopt them too for his sake. And he's stood by me with all this stuff my mother's been doing."

"We would have too you know" said Felicks.

"Of course you would; and don't think I don't appreciate it" said Zoltan "But family's best. And it's created a nawfully strong bond between us. So I'm a marauder too like his friends and it seems right. And I guess none of you really want to have to fight dark wizards; because none of you even thought of going after the inferii last term so that means you're not really up for being marauders."

Glances were exchanged.

"I thought that it was sort of what grown-ups were for" said Leopold. "I don't want to fight dark wizards; I had enough of my aunt, thank you."

Zoltan nodded.

"And that's another reason I worked for my remove; to better be one of those who can protect people from wicked uncles and aunts and so on" he said.

"We will do anything we can in the background to help" said Melior softly "Looking after people or – or casting healing spells."

"Thanks Melior; you're all sports" said Zoltan.

oOoOo

Consequently, all Musical Marauders were in one dormitory to rise for their illicit spell casting during the night; and as the school rose and went down for Frühstück they were greeted by the sound of hollow and metallic sneezing reverberating about the great hall and environs; and visors rose and fell with resounding crashes as though making the sneeze.

"Lumme, that's not half bad on the part of the kids" remarked Zlatko laconically.

Predictably there was somebody to cry

"Oh no the suits of armour have caught fairy flu!". It was one of the girls in the third; Zoltan did not know her name and nor did he care; it was enough that some of the dafter females took up the refrain and pandemonium reigned briefly in the hall until the Headmistress, irritable that people were milling around not seated to rise for her, created the sound of a loud detonation overhead.

"WHAT is the meaning of this unseemly rabble?" she demanded "You mannerless crew, do you then choose to ignore the staff to have some kind of brawl? SIT down immediately and be ready to rise when the staff come in again; and choose by then also a spokesman to tell me what if the trouble!" she withdrew, ushering the rest of the staff with her.

The school was meekly seated and quiet and ready to rise on their return.

Zhanargul rose.

"Some of the silly clunches in the second, third and fourth appear to have been carried away by the notion, promulgated by one of the dippier members of the third, that the suits or armour have caught fairy flu; and I wish I'd thought of using a loud noise to get their attention, ma'am; it was masterly. I do apologise for not managing to abate the hysteria by the time you arrived."

"Thank you Zhanargul; I appreciate that you were probably trying your hardest, you and the other prefects" said Agata "When the middle school decides to have collective hysterics however, stopping it is a little hard."

"Short of spraying them with glumbumble juice" said Cacilia.

They were interrupted by a paroxysm of sneezing from behind them from a corvus-helmed suit of armour, the 'beak' rattling alarmingly.

"Dear me!" said Agata. "All right WHO is the author of this? Ah, I might have guessed" as the Musical Marauders rose in a body. "Well you may spend your leisure periods not merely removing this curse but polishing every suit of armour in the castle and it will take as long as it takes."

The boys bowed acknowledgement and Bronislava curtseyed; at least it was more interesting than lines, and examining the armour that closely – and sanctioned to do so – would give a very good opportunity to learn all its joints and possibilities for getting it moving another time when they figured out how to do so. As Lindhard suggested quietly under cover of everyone falling upon their slightly delayed food.

The others thought that a brilliant idea!

oOoOo

The leisure of the Musical Marauders was rather severely curtailed for a good week; and they decided to put every ounce of work in that they could over the weekend to get the job finished. Interesting at first, the job of polishing every scrap of armour had soon become moderately and then extremely tedious and hard; but, as they declared, well worth it for the joy of the pandemonium it had caused. And when feeling dispirited about removing rust spots they had only to think of the looks on various faces to giggle again and feel better about it.

And it was Corneliu's idea to do a bit of library work when their leisure was restored to see if they could not come up with an enchantment to make the armour ever-bright so if, when they animated it, they got the same punishment, actually they would manage to wriggle out of doing anything.

They found that unless it was goblin made armour this was going to be very hard; until Bronislava suggested chanting. Which suggestion they took up with enthusiasm.

"Of course we might have managed to polish them by chanting" said Bronislava.

"Yes; but that would have broken the spirit of the punishment" said Beremud "As we were presented with polishing stuff we were obviously not meant to use magic."

"Aunt Agata is tough, but it was fair" said Sigismund. "And by the way, while we're doing library work we might as well find out if there's a spell to animate it."

Bronislava giggled.

"We should save that until we're in the fourth; and then you lot dress suits of armour in ball gowns and we'll all take suits of armour to the ball as our partners" she said.

"Brilliant!" breathed Sigismund "Absolutely BRILLIANT!"

"And WHAT a pity we aren't likely to host the Triwizard again next time" mourned Beryx.

"Run that past us again in slow motion?" said Lindhard.

"When we get to go to the Yule Ball it'll be the year of the Triwizard; so we could astound the English with our virtuosity by taking armour to the ball if they were coming here for it" said Beryx.

"Oh bother!" said Zoltan "And by the way, are we going to be trying to circumvent the age line?"

"What do you think?" scoffed Sigismund "Of COURSE we are!"

oOoOo

The seven juniors were extremely glad to get out to play in the snowy landscape around the school; and promptly challenged the third to a snowball fight, dragging in the rest of the second. The first demanded to be a part of it so their girls were given to the third and the second kept the boys.

Zoltan used it to refine upon his transfigurational skills by transforming each snowball, in flight, after he had thrown it, into ice cream, varying the flavours; which once he had hit several third years in the mouth caused a general truce to be called while the third demanded that he display how many flavours he could manage. Zoltan obliged cheerfully; he could not manage any magical ones like raspberry tickle that tickled when it went down, or apricot fool that giggled when you swallowed; but conventional flavours, so long as he had tasted them, were easy.

It was surprising that the entire junior school, being full of ice cream, actually managed kaffee und kuchen; but it is safe to record that all the boys and a significant number of the girls did so manage.

oOoOo

The third year marauders, the Jade Fag Marauders, felt they almost had to answer so spectacular a jape as that of the sneezing armour; especially as the Musical Marauders were already a jape up with their papier-mâché grindylows.

Kjell, Sofie, Leva and Elfleda put their heads together.

"We are, when all is said and done, much more sophisticated than children of the second" Elfleda declared firmly and poked Leva for giggling at that. "We should manage a more sophisticated jape."

"What, with more library work than usual?" asked Sofie with heavy irony.

"That's it; library work!" said Leva "What about having all the books in the library vacate their shelves, fly through the school, flapping like birds, which won't half shift a lot of dust too because the elves don't clean in the libraries, and then flying with elegant grace right back to their proper places; and if we do it right, any that hadn't been IN the right place ought to sort itself so it is; and if they all go back we can't be given a deten to sort them and we can even argue that it was an effort to get them dusted and sorted and so almost virtuous!"

"Isn't it sort of against the rules to do virtuous japes?" asked Kjell.

"Well it's not really virtuous; only that Leva thinks we can argue that it could be made to sound like it" giggled Elfleda. "I like; it's going to take a bit of ritual to do, and by the way, we ought too to be able to get them to act like flocks of starlings too with a bit more work, forming flocks and all wheeling and diving sort of as a body."

There was a lot of scribbling, arithmantic calculation, and poetic writing to get it just right. The Jade Fag Marauders decided to do the chant at their leisure in the middle of the night, with a time delay on the enchantment to allow for the best results. It took them several days of work to be ready; then they duly got up in the night for their sinful endeavours, having poisoned the other members of their respective dormitories a little bit, as Elfleda put it, with carefully brewed relaxing draughts. Sleeping draughts were, or could be, risky; but medical potioneering books held the gentler relaxing draughts and that would probably be quite sufficient to prevent any busybodies from waking up.

They performed their chant, went back to bed and slept with the joyously bad consciences of the mischievous child who has pulled off a good job of mischief.

Which being so, precisely twelve hours later, during Mittagessen, a flock of books flapping majestically and ponderously, flew all around the hall, wheeling as a flock and rising on the thermals from the fire, darted between two of the tables and out again.

"All right, who?" asked Agata, glancing at the Eulenspiegel twins who looked back with outraged innocence!

The four culprits rose.

"It was us" said Leva with no more grammar than remorse.

"Then I believe I shall require the four of you to sort out the mayhem you have caused in the library and give up your leisure until such time as all the books are back in their correct places" said Agata. Leva beamed.

"They already are by now, Frau Professor" she said "We thought it would be a duel way to shake all the dust off as the elves are forbidden to go into the library and to sort out those that had been put back in the wrong place into the right place both at the same time."

Agata blinked.

"I accept the clever twist; do NOT try to convince me it was an altruistic act to clean the libraries, young woman!" she said, snapping her fingers. An elf appeared and bowed. "Elf, is it true that the elves are forbidden into the libraries to clean?" she asked.

"Yes Mistress!" squeaked the elf "It was forbidden by the previous headmaster!"

"Do you know why?" asked Agata.

"Yes mistress!" the elf hesitated; he did not have to answer more than was asked since the chant; he could make her ask each question. But she had facilitated the chant; that was worthy of respect, not dumb insolence. He went on "One of the elves was caught reading; she was punished for it but we was all banned the library."

Agata's breath hissed.

"What was done?" she asked harshly.

"She had to dig her own grave and then collapse the earth on top of herself" squeaked the elf sorrowfully.

"I see" said Agata tautly. "My predecessor was a nasty little man, emphasis on little. I would have the elves resume the cleaning of the library; but I forbid reading unless all chores have been completed."

The elf's ears went up.

"The mistress does not forbid reading outright?"

"No" said Agata "I do not. The castle servants who are capable of learning will serve better if they know more. Be so good as to check if all the books are back on the shelves in the library; there has been an incident."

The elf was back in a trice to confirm this matter; and Agata nodded.

"I will myself check if they are in the right order; if they are you four are off the hook – this time" she said.

The four grinned cheerfully.

The looks on the faces of people ducking as the flapping flock of books flew over had been priceless! Even if the jape had been marred by finding out WHY the elves were banned the library. But good had come of it; the elves were now permitted to read, and the Headmistress was sufficiently shocked by that act of unnecessary cruelty that she was more likely to be sympathetic over freeing elves totally one day.

oOoOo

Zlatko and Zlatka, Xanthe and Xanthippe went to see Agata.

"Is there a portrait of the unlamented Karkaroff anywhere, Professor Bacsó?" asked Zlatko, politely.

"Yes; one was done after his death. I didn't like him so it's in a store room somewhere" said Agata.

"We would like to have the use of it if we may" said Zlatka.

"What are you up to?" asked Agata.

"You might not want to know" Said Xanthippe.

"Tell me" said Agata.

"We thought" said Zlatka, her eyes blazing in anger "That we might ask one of the more talented English artists to repaint the background to confine him, if that's possible, and trap at least a portion of his consciousness there; and then bury it."

"I'll assign the elves to help you look and run errands to England my dears" said Agata instantly.

Igor Karkaroff was delighted to be moved out of the dusty box room where he had been stacked with his face to the wall; convinced he was going to be hung in prominence in the head's office, and asking questions about who was now in charge.

Both sets of twins ignored him.

They asked the elf assigned to them to take a message to Madam Charlotte Malfoy first while they took him to the broom sheds and cleaned off the cobwebs so more paint would take; and they were not gentle. Karkaroff raged at them as impudent children and threatened to tell their new head teacher.

"Can it, worm face" said Zlatko "SHE'D suggest we used turpentine."

"Don't dignify it by talking to it" said Xanthe "It's not worth the trouble."

The elf returned with Charlotte Malfoy herself, and a small part goblin girl of about seven holding her hand.

"My daughter Veronika" said Charlotte "She's a little clingy; not long adopted you understand. I wish you girls will take her a little way away within sight of me and play with her; I don't think she needs to learn these techniques yet."

Karkaroff was sounding off about abominations.

A rapid brush produced bindings and a gag.

"Don't insult Malfoys, creep features" said Charlotte succinctly. "Now listen, Karkaroff; what I am doing is because the children of the school know now that you murdered an elf for reading in the library in about the cruellest way I can imagine; so they have asked me to undertake the following techniques to let you know their displeasure. I'll ungag you before I hand you over but I don't actually like listening to nasty tongued brats while I work; and nor should young ladies have to hear such nasty things either."

Charlotte went to work with a lot of perspective work to paint in a cell with no doors in wall, roof or ceiling; having improved the bonds she had painted to be certain he could not escape. They were in acrylic and would come off with a solvent later, like the gag.

And when she was done, and the paint was dry – and she had used liquin to be sure it would dry fast – she erased the bonds and gag.

"All yours" she said to Zlatko.

"You work very fast, ma'am" said Zlatko, in admiration.

"Walls aren't actually all that challenging" said Charlotte.

"How much do we owe you?" asked Zlatko.

"Nothing; this is my contribution towards elven freedom of the future" said Charlotte. "Bye, Karkaroff; hope you don't enjoy yourself." She took Veronika by the hand and the elf apparated them away, and then returned himself.

"Please, what are the young mistresses and young master going to do?" asked the elf.

"What else? Bury him" said Zlatko "If you know where it is, in the grave of the elf he murdered; just for added symmetry and because he will feel insulted."

The elf skipped joyously ahead of them out of the broomsheds and to an area out back of the castle.

Zlatko summoned wind to scour away the last stubborn snow and cast digging spells. They did not go far enough down to expose any bones. The howling, screaming and swearing portrait of Karkoroff was laid in carefully, looking upwards; and slowly but inexorably the four used their wands to place the earth back on top of him.

"Of course he won't suffer in the same way she did, curse him" said Xanthippe.

"But on the other hand" said Zlatko, putting an arm around her "As he's already dead he'll suffer mentally more and forever or until the oil paints or canvas decay enough to make a hole in the canvas for his spirit to run out of. That was POWERFUL stuff Madam Malfoy did; and because he was engaged with us in being stroppy she was able to hold him while she painted those bindings and while she then walled him up. As I understand it, his consciousness is now trapped in the physical world of the painting, which is almost impossible to do because normally if you put in a trapping background the consciousness of the subject would hoof it before you finished if you'd painted the figure; and if you don't leave a way in, even if it's only implied by the edges of the painting, their consciousness can't GET in to the painting in the first place if you do the background first. Tying him up and tying him to the table he was leaning on was a masterstroke of hers; and using removable paint. He's probably going to go insane – or insaner – and serve him right. People like him leave elves with precious little sanity. You may share what we did with all the elves if you like" he added to the elf who was grinning in fierce pleasure while all the time tears ran down his face.

"What was her name?" asked Xanthe suddenly "The elf who was murdered?"

"It was Clotie, little mistress; she was Ritty's – my – daughter" said the elf.

Xanthe went to work with the remaining snow to make a slab; transfigured it into stone and with her wand carefully engraved the words,

"Here lies Clotie, a scholar".

Ritty kissed her feet; and Xanthe heaved him up.

"One day" said Zlatko "All elves will be free and those who want to study will be able to go to school. The Headmistress knows this; she paves the way. Freeing all elves cannot happen at once; and few can accept the idea of honourable freedom. But it will come. And Clotie's death has made the head think; she did not die in vain because now I think Madam Bacsó is a more willing ally. And any marauder in the school is ready and willing to give clothes to any elf who wants; and you may pass that around. We will not force such on those who do not want it; but for those who do we are ready. Marauders fight oppression; and oppose dark wizards."

"And boy is Karkaroff opposed right now" said Zlatka.

oOoOo

"Please, young master, if we was free, what would we do?" squeaked one of the half dozen or so elves who had turned up in Zlatko's dormitory.

"There are several options" said Zlatko. "There are free elves in Hogwarts school who take a small token wage in addition to their keep and continue to work there; and that would be one such option. A second option would be to accept liveried service with one of the students; my sister and I or any of the marauders would be willing to employ any one of you as such; thirdly you might wish to join the community in the tower in the forest where a group of elves freed by line death have also congregated along with the wild fey; fourthly you might wish to, singly or in a group, set up a business wherein you work for limited periods for those who have no family elf and cannot afford full time servants but would like the cachet of elves for, say, a particular event. A group of such elves in England, I believe, are very successful, and specialise in running weddings. Fifthly you might ask for employment in another school if you enjoy the certainty of the regulated way of doing things but prefer not to be amongst others you know who might disparage you for being free. Prince Peak has I believe some slave elves who will not accept freedom and some free paid elves; all the elves at Schloss Adler are free; and Hogwarts too has a mix. And there will be other schools starting. And actually, somebody said something about Jade Von Luytens having a hospital built, a teaching hospital, near her school; they'd jump at free elf nursing staff I should think. Do you want to be free?"

"We isn't sure" said the spokesman.

"Then I advise that you do not make up your mind too quickly" said Zlatko "After all it's not a decision that can be reversed except by a ritual and then, so far as I'm aware, only for those freed by line death; the reassignment ritual. Why not visit some other places where there are free elves and talk to them? Then you can get some idea about it."

"The young master is very wise and very kind to give us permission to go visiting" squeaked the elf.

"Oh if it was necessary to overcome the curse of slavery I'd make it an order; but I should LIKE you to go around and talk to people" said Zlatko. "I think that ought to fulfil all the requirements. Singularly wretched curse, the whole boiling of it" he added, mostly to himself. These half scared, half eager little creatures should find out that being free could be wonderful, and was not a thing to be terrified of; and then he would cheerfully give them some garment or other; and help them as they needed it in their chosen new life. He hoped that some at least would choose to stay; Agata might well be persuaded to pay a token amount to them to do so, but if they started deserting in droves it would put a severe strain on her loyalty to the ideal.

Which really, would be hardly surprising.

oOoOo

Agata breathed a sigh of relief.

The two groups of Marauders likely to pull japes had both pulled them; and it was an unwritten rule that there should only be one per group each term; and that anyone in the fifth year or above was above such things. And Zlatko had reported that only half a dozen elves were thinking of freedom and that he had suggested the option of a token payment to continue working in the school; she would go to the kitchens and tell the elves that in the changing climate of views where free elves might live with honour in employment she would accept applications to be liveried members of the servants of the school.

After all, if she acceded to the several suggestions she had received to have a goblin handyman and groundsman that would require livery. It was better to meet the inevitable prepared than to fight tooth and nail for the status quo and find yourself bereft of any stability. Severus had plenty of free elves working for him after all; and he had declared then more capable and efficient for having more initiative and for being prepared to think for themselves. Yes, she would tell the castle elves this, that the payment to free elves was as a reward for them using their initiative and learning to think better for themselves and hence being better servants. It would appeal to the peculiar reverse snobbery of elves. And some day in the not too distant future there might even be cachet in any organisation that had elves free in livery who remained because they wanted to not because they HAD too for ties to place or family. Moreover she had been unaware until Clovis had told her of the levels of abuse the elves had to put up with in the castle; Agata was all for stern, even harsh discipline; but there were levels at which it became inefficient because beings totally abused could not function properly. And elves subjected to rape by pupils was certainly quite disgusting; not to mention costly, in monetary terms, the cost of killing a castle elf by such a birth as a half breed was not even replaced by the child thereof; since it appeared, many of the few offspring who survived were killed by the other elves in case half breeds grew up to be trouble makers. She had already passed the order that elves were not expected to sleep with the pupils; that should put an end to that. Yes; better to have willing workers who worked out of loyalty than those who did what was required for a curse. It was far more effective. And she had too to admit that the elves who had come with Severus for the chant hardly looked like elves at all; they were confident and upright, not a cringe among them; certainly not in any respect as loathsome as many elves were for their servility. Especially the ones who called Severus 'dad' and expected to be treated as equals by human children; bizarre! But then, also, very English.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

The weather started to improve around Valentine's Day; on which Zhanargul did not get – and nor did she expect – a card from Lazlo; it was understood that they ignored each other save for necessary meetings in the corridors. Zhanargul half regretted that she was not taking history; and was half glad. Her father had been angry at first when she refused to take it even to ZP; but she had shown him her assignments and the comments on them written by Frau Fabeln, whom he declared to be a total fool, and made no more bones about Zhanargul's choices. She studied history by reading; and planned to take a ZH in European history during her year post ZH study at Prince Peak. Zhanargul was studying those subjects she thought most practical for a ruler to protect her people; Dark Arts – which she looked upon as Defence against the Dark Arts – because Jade had made it so interesting and because it was something Zhanargul was actually good at; and that was backed up by Ancient Runes and Chanting. There were enough old remnants of the Bactrian empire and others in Kazakhstan; being able to recognise logograms and sigils might just help prevent letting any more liches out, or setting off curses. And chanting – well chanting could do pretty much anything if you knew what you were doing. And Zhanargul was picking up more from conversations with Saula about Charms, Potions and Transfigurations; the subjects her lady in waiting was taking in addition to chanting.

It was no surprise that Takeo was taking six ZH's; he was like that. But then he planned to open a school, and the founder of such had really to know enough to know whether his teachers were in fact sufficiently knowledgeable.

Zhanargul ran a party for the school for Valentine's Day – it beat the idea of having to prize various couples out of cupboards – with plenty of confectionaries guaranteed to make anyone joining in feel queasy enough later not to get up to illicit groping or more. Apart from juniors who usually had the digestions of camels and who were not likely to be engaging in illicit love play anyway.

They were more likely to be using an ingeniously enchanted array of view-o-sneaks attached to omnioculars to record their elders in flagrante delicto to giggle over as Zhanargul discovered when she went to check why she was missing two sixth formers and four third years.

And when she caught the Jade Fag Marauders at it she firmly wiped the omnioculars and swept off to interrupt the sexual endeavours of Adelard Löenzahn and a girl called Liselotte Feder in their sexual endeavour; and depressed their attempts by pointing out to Lieselotte that if she thought that Adelard had any honourable intentions when he had declared intent of marrying only a pure blood witch she must be even stupider than a witch who would risk losing her chance to take ZHs through having to care for an illegitimate child, and that it was fortunate that Adelard required geomancy to find the requisite organ since sight alone did not suffice for something so undergrown, and that she was surprised at Liselotte for mistaking his wealth for sex appeal.

Both lower sixth youngsters retired crushed.

"Good job she didn't know we were on the second omniocular" said Kjell as they recorded this conversation on the wiped one.

oOoOo

It was several days later – by which time it was too late – that Zhanargul found out that they already had one display to show, for which they charged a sickle to view, and that they had recorded her diatribe – for which they charged a galleon to view – in aid of the free school.

Under the circumstances Zhanargul decided to pretend that she knew nothing. It served Adelard and Liselotte both right.

oOoOo

Zhanargul was quite glad of a diversion in the form of a match against the Szombethely Salamanders, a Hungarian team whose geographical position near to Austria meant that the team were also considering playing Prince Peak. Their robes graduated from red through to yellow and their main tactic was speed and fast turning. Gisela and Sigismundus as beaters did their best, but if the quaffle passed them at all, Harald Trollkettil was no match for any of the Salamander chasers.

Zlatka, Zhanargul and Stiv did their best to keep the scoring as even as possible, using much back passing and height changing manoeuvres; and Zlatko did all he might as seeker. It was to no avail; though Zlatko caught the snitch Durmstrang had been outscored by too much for it to make a difference. In the post-match post mortem, Stiv declared that he could not decide if it was the opponents' superior brooms – they all had the Schnellstfluger 07 – that had won the visitors the game, or whether it was Harald's wincing like a little girl that had lost it. Stiv was NOT pleased with Harald whom he felt had not played up.

"We'd have won dead easy if Gorbrin Malfoy had been broomsurfing" said Zlatko.

"Well it's not my fault!" declared Harald "They're a professional team; you expect them to beat schoolkids! If the beaters hadn't let so many through….."

"The beaters kept a good many OUT" said Stiv rather coldly "However your total number of saves is zero; which is a bit of a bad show. I'm going to play Xanthippe next match instead; at least she's likely to try."

Harald tried shouting, then pleading; and then he stormed off.

"Crumbs, do you think he'll refuse to play for the team in the future?" asked Zlatka.

"No such luck" said Zlatko.

oOoOo

The weather was really improving in the rapid way continental weather has of doing, without the long drawn out slushy weather the English are used to account as early spring. Some high winds kept the children in for a few days, then the flowers were out in the grass leading down to the lake and birds sang in the forest, proclaiming their territories. Squirrels ran chattering through the branches and hedgehogs awoke from hibernation and snuffled amongst leaves.

Those birds, squirrels and hedgehogs that did not find themselves on the menu in the new elf tower that is.

oOoOo

Zoltan meanwhile was finding no difficulty keeping up with his new class; the work was just stretching enough to be fun, and if he occasionally made his father groan by returning a ZH level answer in transfigurations, it also pleased Attila mightily

And Zoltan was also aware of two as yet not fully formed consciousnesses within Cacilia; knew that he was going to have twin siblings. And he loved them so much! Sigismund loved them too; but he had siblings, in his adopted family; Zoltan had never had anyone and he swore a silent oath that he would do all he could to protect his baby brothers or sisters without trying to smother them.

He was hardly aware that his mother had been sentenced on a charge of kidnapping and of actual harm to a minor; and was serving fifteen years in Nurmengard. Attila had been to the trial; and Nora had shouted at him that she had hurt his bastard son.

When the charge concerning the hurting of Bronislava came up she was confused; angry even, trying to deny that it was a little girl who was hurt but the bastard brat of her husband. She was warned that taking away the good name of a married woman, to wit, the mother of the little girl hurt could lead to charges of slander; and she kept repeating that it could not be a little girl, that she had told them to hurt or kill any boy who looked like her precious Zoltan. Attila had left, sickened; she was scarcely even sane any more, her hatred had robbed her of her tenuous grip on reality.

He went back to the castle to love Cacilia fiercely, almost roughly; constrained only by fear of hurting their unborn twins. And Cacilia responded to him, and gave him all he needed; and was there for him to sob in relief that Sigismund and Zoltan were both safe while Nora was safely locked away. No matter that the blood group could always find them; now they would not HAVE to effect a rescue at any time.

And Cacilia reflected that the line between stubbornness and obsession, and between obsession and insanity was a very fine one; and that the difference might mean whether or not evil acts were committed whether by proxy, in Nora Nagy's case, or using dark magic. It was something to ponder over how easily temptation might drag someone with a grudge into being a dark wizard.

But Zoltan knew nothing of this; Attila had learned to shield, at least from happy and busy little boys. Zoltan's biggest trouble was the moaning of some of the second that a brat from the first year should never have been put into the second, the burden of their argument being that it was unfair that Zoltan performed better than most of them.

Zoltan did not care; he laughed and suggested that they do as he had done and just work a little harder.

And the Musical Marauders came as a matched set of seven; and the most aggressive child in the year was not about to take THEM on. Even Ernst Reinkessel who further resented having the said first year brat in the same dormitory; because Ernst had come off worst against marauders before, and yet knew how much more they might have done to cause him grief than they had. So he registered his grumbles; and went no further.

And the Musical Marauders thought that life was sweet.

oOoOo

It was more or less against the marauding code to pull a second jape in one term but that did not include other minor mischief; and the Musical Marauders, having seen the omniocular recordings – the better off ones coughed up for Bronislava, Beremud and Beryx – decided that there was no harm in serenading Adelard. It may be said that they put Liselotte down as a gullible fool who had hopefully learned her lesson.

Accordingly, dawn saw them outside the window of the lower sixth dormitory playing 'Come and Stir my Cauldron hard' on, of all things, comb and paper; and being the MUSICAL Marauders they did it in four part harmony.

Adelard might have ignored them, at the advice of the more sensible of his dormitory had they not burst into song too, singing

"Wotan, Wotan, give me your answer do" since Liselotte had caused great hilarity by declaring that Adelard had the body of a god and called him Wotan in their early passionate fumblings. (the loss of the second omniocular was much regretted) to the high amusement of the lower school.

It was however too much for the embarrassed Adelard, whose sense of gravitas was important to him.

Consequently he picked up the nearest heavy object he could find and hurled it out of the window. The Musical Marauders dodged easily, laughing.

It was a book.

"Hey he didn't ought to treat books like that!" said Zoltan, the bibliophile of the group. He picked it up; it was the sixth form text book on transfigurations.

They quickly checked inside it to see that it was Adelard's and he had not offended against one of his fellows by throwing another boy's book; and then took it away quietly by itself where it wouldn't be disturbed to absorb the mysteries of ZH level Transfiguration while they decided what to do about it.

"We could claim that if he threw it at us he was giving it to us" said Bronislava "This Gamp fellow has to be English; too tortuous not to be."

"Or we could be awfully virtuous and hand it in to dad and say we found it on the ground below one of the dorm windows and thought we ought to return it via the teacher whose class it belonged to" said Zoltan "It's against the rules to have study books in the dorms and I reckon he deserves a rocket for that."

"Well we had extraneous books like 'Blood Magic, Love Magic' in our dorm so can we cast stones?" said Sigismund.

"Only to keep it safe; we never READ it in there" said Lindhard "Besides, it wasn't a study book; it was a leisure activity. We're allowed story books and books on hobbies." It had been a newly instituted rule Jade had firmly suggested when she came to teach.

This piece of casuistry satisfied Sigismund.

"Well let's enchant a pen to write as we speak and we'll read out the juiciest bits first like this law of Elemental Conjuration" he said "And then we'll have a better idea of the more exciting sounding articles in 'Transfiguration Today' because there's such a lot you can do with Transfiguration and I never even KNEW that conjuring stuff out of thin air was part of it."

"There's laws about energy; I was eavesdropping on a really high level argument papa and mama Cacilia were having" said Zoltan "And by the way, are we all going to their wedding? The divorce ought to be through any day; it's only paperwork holding it up."

"I say, wouldn't it be cool if we could practise this conjuration and produce something a bit more exciting than confetti?" said Bronislava.

Zoltan beamed on her.

"Oh YES!" he said fervently. Bronislava went pink.

"Singing birds anyone?" suggested Corneliu.

"Singing birds sounds cool" said Zoltan. "We'd better hand in this book and get to serious work."

oOoOo

Attila took a dim view of his subject's books being found on the ground in the dewy dawn and when the Musical Marauders advanced the theory that it had fallen out of the window he was rather irritable.

Adelard had an uncomfortable ten minutes with the irascible Transfigurations Professor; but for all his faults Adelard appreciated that the children had NOT mentioned his throwing of it at them; and that their revenge for that was having him chewed out for carelessness.

Adelard took it fairly meekly; the moment he had thrown the book he had regretted it and lived in hope – not very great – that the children might just return it. This was probably the next best thing – or at least the least worst – that they might have done. He sought them out.

"Thanks for not ratting me up for throwing it" he said stiffly.

"That wouldn't have been all that fair" said Sigismund "We HAD to rag you, you know; it's sort of required. You did rather use that silly creature."

Adelard burned. He had NOT acted like a gentleman; and he knew fine well what his older brother, his guardian, would say if he ever found out.

"Truce?" he said warily.

Sigismund nodded and held out a hand; Adelard shook thankfully. He knew that the marauders would keep a truce and they at least would never be calling him 'Wotan' again; and none of the rest of the junior dared do so to a sixth former!

oOoOo

Attila finally got the papers of divorce on grounds of endangerment of the offspring of the marriage; the wheels of bureaucracy ground slow and not so much exceeding small as in the original quote but more exceedingly petty. And Cacilia and Attila invited the whole of the marauders to stay the weekend at Cacilia's parents' house where they were to get married, then and there in the middle of term and to Hades with anyone who might complain. Agata was to attend; and Attila had written to his parents inviting them if they should wish to come.

With the bloodbond, there was no difficulty apparating there; and Georg and Helga Von Freyer were delighted to be surrounded by so many children.

Cacilia was radiant.

And Zoltan was delighted. Now she was his Mama properly; and he could call her that, out of school.

And Attila and Cacilia were moved – and not a little awed – when all seven children produced a variety of singing birds from their wands. Admittedly Lindhard only managed one, with a lot of struggle, and most of the others managed three or four, only Zoltan effortlessly pouring out a stream of eight singing nightingales; but the combined effort was amazing and so Attila said.

"It's – well may I say that some of my upper sixth struggle with that skill" he said "Lindhard my boy, how proud I am of you for managing at all; transfiguration does not come easy to you. If you can do that, lad, you can do ANYTHING. I'm so proud of all of you; and Cacilia and I are…. Well we're glad you're here"

"He wants to say we love you all dearly" said Cacilia "But he's a big lug who can't express his feelings" she had possession of the big lug's hand. "He also means we'll shout a lot at you in class."

The happy couple were given seven identical beaming smiles.

And Attila had never realised how happy it was possible to be!

He smiled at his bride; and read his own happiness reflected in her beautiful eyes. Life would be good from now on; and all these children a part of it as friends of his wonderful sons.

It was a shame that his parents had decided not to accept the olive branch and come; but that was their choice. He had brilliant parents-in-law in Georg and Helga; and though it was a shame for the boys, especially Zoltan, not to know his paternal grandparents, well they had been given every chance in a letter telling them that his sons would be there too.

And the Marauders spent the rest of the weekend exploring the schloss that was to be Zoltan's new home every holiday; for Georg and Helga had turned one of the guest bedrooms near Cacilia's room into a small kitchen, and another into a sitting room so they might be private as a family unit when they wished to be. Attila appreciated such thoughtfulness; though he could quite readily see them living as an extended family without need to withdraw save when he and Cacilia wanted some privacy after the children were in bed. Georg and Helga were such comfortable people to be around! And they had been so very tactful in asking him it he would mind any children Cacilia had, or at least her first son, bearing their surname as well as his.

Attila had promptly suggested that all children be Nagy Von Freyer, so there would be no questions asked at school as to why siblings had different names; he was of no old or important family that he minded if the children bore his name or Cacilia's; they should have his legally too but would doubtless be just Von Freyer at school. Which, when all was said and done, would get them further in life than an obscure Hungarian surname.

They were expecting twin daughters this time – as it was important to Georg he had checked – and he and Cacilia had decided to call them Agata and Nefrita, after the two strong women who had been an influence in their lives; as neither he nor Cacilia liked the name Helga to name either for her mother. But to honour her mother, Agata was to be Agata Helga; and at Cacilia's suggestion, Nefrita was to be Nefrita Csilla after his own mother. Names enshrined legally but not for use. And Agata was the Hungarian version of the name of the German Agathe, so she would bear one Hungarian and one German name; and Nefrita would have one more or less German name and one Hungarian name. And might not be the only Nefrita at school at that; since the overthrow of Odessa had made Nefrita Von Strang und Luytens famous her name might be presumed to become mildly fashionable. And that would mildly irritate Jade as having been the subject of a prophecy had also irritated her! But that was Jade for you. Well, she would have this baby named for her because of personal reasons; and would have to put up with it. And as Cacilia said, as they were both going to be their little jewels, Agate and Jade were both semi-precious stones and so went well together.

oOoOo

It may be said that Cacilia almost cried when Zoltan hugged her fiercely and called her 'mama' without the addition of her name; he was such a darling little boy, and that was an indication of how well he had accepted her; and his way of telling her that he wanted her to be everything for him that Nora had not managed. And Cacilia swore to herself that she would never let him down.

Back in school Zoltan was buoyant; and soared even higher in his schoolwork.

"Watch it" laughed Lindhard "Or they'll be putting you up into the third and then we'll actually have to do some work to catch up with you!"

"It wouldn't do you lazy slobs any harm" said Zoltan unkindly and – it may be said – unfairly.

He had to undo himself from being a green, tentacular thing without bones and with pustules that exploded summoning – a nice twist on their recent researches – a small swarm of flies.

"I say I LIKE the pest popping pustule curse" he said to his brother – it having been Sigismund's effort – in admiration. "I vote we all learn that one; there's something inordinately gruesome about having pustules give birth to flies."

"It is rather horrid" said Bronislava, also in admiration.

"I wish I'd thought of it" said Beremud.

They went off in perfect amity perfecting the spell and suggesting such twists of having pustules explode to disgorge maggots instead as even more loathsome and even better than the bat bogey curse.

oOoOo

The whole school was there to support the quidditch team of course for the challenge by a new Russian private school called the Cheesteey Krovy Shkola Koldovstvoy which as Russian speakers explained, said it all; translating as the Pure Blood School of Wizardry. And not only did they seem to like pure blood, but the team when it arrived consisted entirely of Great Russians and hardly a hint of any Slavic blood. The visiting Quidditch Captain made it even clearer when he explained condescendingly that since Durmstrang had become soft, they, pure blooded and proud of it, would show the degenerate Germans and their even more degenerate satellites how to do things.

They were put out to find that the entire school rocked with laughter.

"Why, what a comedian you are to be sure!" said Stiv, picking up quickly how best to play this. "We like a good laugh before the match; to make sure we know it will be a friendly match from genial opponents. What a pity you did not fix to play Hogwarts; this year their seeker, who is also head boy, is a goblin; he would have enjoyed your drollery I am certain!"

"Yes" said Zhanargul "We like to joke; and appreciate that you who come from new and nameless families of no pedigree feel somewhat intimidated by those of us who can trace our family line more than a thousand years; but I pray you, do not let those of us who have such pedigrees in any way make you feel inferior! After all, new blood can bring new vigour; which is the ethos of the English creed that muggleborn increase the strength of the stock."

The Russian captain spluttered impotently, unable to think of anything to say.

Zlatko pulsed approval at Zhanargul.

"Couldn't have given a better put down myself" he murmured "And as head girl you had every right to speak up; I didn't think I could get away with it."

"Just make their seeker look a prat and catch the ruddy snitch first" said Zhanargul.

The game was on.

The Russians were good; there was no denying it. Except, like the Durmstrang of old, they were a team of the individually good, without team play, each player a prima donna.

Once the Durmstrangers realised this, they flew rings around them; and as all but two were now of the blooded, with Xanthippe playing keeper they had an awareness of each other that they instinctively tightened, because this was not about quidditch it was about politics and attitudes and freedoms. Zlatko managed to take out one of the Russian beaters by his crazy tactics of charging between them; naturally the visitors adhered to the adage of 'take out the seeker'. Zlatko was not so easily taken out however. And he did his own taking our of the opposing seeker with the closest Wronski Feint his sister later declared she had ever seen, that had Xanthippe declaring that if he had hit and the ground hadn't killed him she almost might have felt like it! The Russian seeker had no chance of pulling out in time and crashed hard to the cheers of the crowd. Seven Durmstrangers played five; and the outcome could be in no doubt. Scoring already favoured the German school; and Zlatko absently side-slipped and reached out for the snitch as though he knew it was there all the time and had risked losing it to pull the Wronski Feint; and it was only to his fellows that Zlatko admitted that he had suddenly seen the thing as he stabilised and enjoyed a bout of good traditional German Schardenfreude over his counterpart's crash. The nonchalance of the catch was just Zlatko.

"The soft and weakened Durmstrang has won by eight hundred and twenty points to the strong, pure blood visitors' score of one hundred and thirty" announced Takeo, in charge of the magical megaphone. "The Russians really have a great sense of humour!"

Russians being notoriously humourless this raised a laugh.

Some of the Russian children in the school were taking exception to this; and Takeo added

"Our Russian team captain Stiv Molotov leads the united countries of Europe as well as usual, showing that Durmstrang and its concept of many cultures meeting has its advantages, even if we are too weak and feeble to muster as much humour from the situation as the inbred – apologies, German is not my first language – PURE bred I mean – Great Russian school. Three cheers for our gallant and humorous opponents!"

There were more ironic cheers than genuine ones; but the applause was mostly polite enough. The new school had set the entire of Durmstrang seething, even such dyed-in-the-wool supporters of pure bloodedness as Adelard Löenzahn, who was still loyal to his school and incensed that these ruddy foreigners should call them weak!

oOoOo

"It is of course a low score for us because we lost two of our players" said the Russian captain "Had they continued to play we should have scored better."

Stiv smiled sweetly.

"Of course if they had been players worth playing our seeker would not so easily have disposed of them from the field of play" he said.

"What do you mean? The loss of our beater was a pure accident!" exclaimed the Russian.

"Oh no it wasn't old boy" said Stiv "Favourite tactic of Zlatko's; works a treat against the more bone headed beaters. Didn't work against the Hogwarts team and he damn nearly got thrown from his broom himself; they are GOOD, we had to work to beat them! But no accident. You should listen to the Wizarding Wireless broadcasts of our matches against the pro teams old boy; you'd have found out how often it works."

"It – that is INTOLERABLE! It must be cheating!"

"Well if it's not cheating under the international rules we usually play by I rather fancy it isn't cheating; unless you wanted to introduce the sort of rules little kindergarten babes use because you can't cope with anything rougher?" said Stiv.

The Russian captain drew wand on him; and Stiv folded his arms and contemptuously deflected curses.

"Apparently we are too weak to be jinxed" said Zlatko's sneering voice. One of the other Russians drew wand on him; and Zlatko laughed, folded his arms, and let him do his worst. The other Russian players started to join in.

The Musical Marauders had started chanting.

oOoOo

Agata turned to the headmaster of the Russian school, a man named Dolokhov, and a relation of the deatheater of the same name.

"Dear me, apparently your pupils have discipline problems as well as an inability to overcome other children" she said "Of course Zhanargul and Stiv are in the upper sixth, but Xanthippe in the fifth is doing well enough against that girl – is she human or is she half troll? – who appears to be so ill disciplined as to think that the unforgivable curses are suitable to use on a little girl not yet turned sixteen."

The headmaster flushed in fury and called on his team to cease this brawl immediately.

He pretended to ignore the critical comment from a Durmstrang spectator – it was Xanthe – that a brawl surely implied people fighting back rather than those too well behaved to get involved. The entirety of the team and marauders had learned Russian from Stiv in preparation for unpleasantness.

oOoOo

Kaffee und Kuchen was a quiet meal and the visitors departed as soon after it as they might. And it was not until their breakfast next morning that the manifestation of the delayed curse chanted up by the Musical Marauders became apparent; when pustules covered the team that burst spraying maggots everywhere.

It might be said that pure blooded vomit looks like that of anyone else.

Dolokhov contacted Agata by floo and ranted about her violation of quarantine that his team had caught some loathsome disease that he had never come across before.

"Our school has no disease, Sergei" said Agata coldly "I don't know what you are talking about."

"Don't know? Surely you cannot miss pustules exploding, already filled with maggots?" cried Dolokhov.

"Most unpleasant" said Agata "However I suspect that you will find that it is not a disease but a jinx; I DID notice some of our juniors in a rather meaningful looking huddle; and that group DO hold delayed action curses as rather a speciality of theirs. I suspect you'll find it's not the work of any more insidious an organism than a group of twelve year olds; normal pranks at work! Any competent curse breaker should manage to overcome the work of such babes, naturally; but if you don't have any capable, I'll send one of my Dark Arts ZH students to give them a little practise in a real situation."

The green flames flared up as she cut the connection with cancelling powder.

oOoOo

It was two days before Dolokhov contacted Agata again and asked – through gritted teeth – that she send someone to uncurse his students.

Agata took Zhanargul; tempting as it was to take Zlatko, there might be some reason to avoid open war with Russia.

Zhanargul used Scarpin's Revellaspell, laughed and said,

"Ingenious little monkeys, aren't they, Professor Bacsó? It has rather the stamp of certain of our imps. Will I punish them for it or let it go for their patriotic fervour?"

"Punish it for your need to put yourself out over it, and mine" said Agata "I leave it in your capable hands."

"Girl CAN you cure this curse or not?" demanded Dolokhov "Because if so, just get on with it!"

Zhanargul dropped a curtsey to Agata.

"Frau Professor, this man's manner is rough, vulgar and frightening; I do not think I want to oblige him if he cannot have the manners of anything but the pigsty" she said "Am I required so to do?"

"Most certainly not my dear" said Agata "Sergei, apologise for your rudeness to my head girl and request her aid with a little more couth or neither she nor any of my other pupils or staff will aid your students in their predicament; it was their manners, doubtless learned from you, that got them into it in the first place."

Dolokhov almost went purple.

"I apologise" he ground out "Please will you remove this curse, Fraulein."

Zhanargul dropped him a little curtsey. It was nothing like as deep as she gave to Agata.

"Apology accepted" she said in Russian "I will aid your unfortunate maggots to be free of their disgusting hosts. Have I the construction correct on that, Frau Bacsó?"

"Oh I think so" said Agata. How CLEVER of Zhanargul to conceal the impudence in what could be argued was poor Russian!

Zhanargul chanted briefly as she walked around the seven maggot-infested Russians, her wand tracing an intricate pattern. There was a loud POP on each of the afflicted as every last pustule burst as one, spraying maggots everywhere; and Zhanargul continued walking round, ignoring the shower of maggots. And only she knew how hard it was not to yell and duck and to seem supremely indifferent.

"The pustules will come no more" said Zhanargul "And there will be no scars left by the ones recently burst; they are better left to heal at their own rate. A nice application of elemental conjuration; it strikes me those kids have been doing more library work than I was aware of. Well well, at least as the maggots are conjured they should all disappear of their own accord before they turn into flies; the kids haven't at least got the ability – or more likely the inclination – to add permanencing magic. Good day to you!"

oOoOo

Zhanargul, pointing out to the culprits that she and the Head had been inconvenienced by having to break the curse of the Musical Marauders, set them, as they were so fond of insects in relation to Russians, to write out the entire score of Rimsky-Korsakov's 'Flight of The Bumble Bee'.

The Musical Marauders had never meant to inconvenience either Professor Bacsó or Zhanargul and said so; and readily accepted discipline, clamouring only to know what happened. And Zhanargul decided that the dignity of the new school did NOT need preserving and gave them a blow by blow account.

The Musical Marauders voted her a good sport, and having completed their imposition, proceeded to get out their combs and paper again – as appropriate instruments – and serenaded her with all parts complete from their carefully written scores. Zhanargul laughed and kissed them all soundly because they were naughty imps.

It had been a job VERY well jobbed!


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

The blooded of the fourth received a letter via Wencelada from the Bee Marauders of Prince Peak; in which they were warned that if a girl called Eve Cherrytree should come to Durmstrang they should give her every chance to redeem herself but should be aware that she had been expelled for writing some of the most vile and filthy anonymous letters to first years and that besides being racist, which ought not to show as much in Durmstrang, she was also rather sly. They recounted how she had reduced the size of clothes of a pretty half goblin girl who had been asked to the Yule ball by a boy Eve had wanted to go with as an example.

Wencelada, Axel, Grishilde and Zyrillis discussed the matter and decided that they would not bring the matter up unless this Cherrytree girl made a nuisance of herself; and went to consult too with Agata.

Agata read the letter proffered by Wencelada and nodded.

"I have spoken to Professor Snape after the girl's parents made tentative enquiries of me" she said "He hopes that having the implications of her actions pointed out will be enough to cure the girl of such activities; and I will be pleased if you WILL remain quiet about it and give her a chance. I can sympathise that a girl who finds goblins unpleasant to look upon might well behave more than normally badly if forced into close proximity with them. From the additional information your er counterparts in Prince Peak give you it may be that there is more to it than that; but we shall see. Let us give this girl every opportunity; it is a shame to brand a girl of only just fifteen and take away her chances of education. I appreciate your coming to me, to let me know what you have been told; and too I appreciate your willingness to help. She will indeed be starting next week as I have intimated my willingness to take her. With luck she will settle down and there should be no further trouble for anyone; Axel, I particularly appreciate your willingness to keep your mouth shut as I know you love gossip."

"Ma'am, it's the collecting it I love more than passing it on" said Axel. "Though I HAVE used my reputation to start sundry rumours just for fun, like the one about the dragon Professor Rebet was keeping in a secret dungeon next to the potions stores that Professor Von Freyer has inherited."

"You ARE a bad boy" said Agata "Mind you it seems to keep MOST people from interfering in the stores. An Ukrainian Ironbelly I suppose?"

"What else?" grinned Axel.

oOoOo

Eve Cherrytree, introduced to the fourth, looked around uncertainly.

"I – I did not realise there would be so many!" she said "This – all these people are fourth years?"

"Oh there are only twenty four in this year; it's a small year" said Wencelada. "Some of the largest classes have more than thirty in them; and the numbers are said to be growing. I suspect there were plenty of people who avoided sending their offspring to school when Odessa was in ascendancy; though of course such people nowadays might choose instead to send their offspring to the subsidised school run by Professor Snape's daughter to have their offspring come more readily to terms with the modern era and more liberal outlooks."

"I imagine however there will be plenty of us who prefer not to be affected by the mad experiment of educating sub-beings" said Eve.

Wencelada shrugged.

"Oh there are those who will agree with you; I'm not one of them. But you're as entitled to your view as I, so best perhaps not to discuss it. Forgive me, but if you dislike a large school, why then did you not pick some dame school? Many offer as many as five subjects."

"Because I am used to studying a wide range of subjects; and even so I have had to drop one of my subjects as you do not offer Divination here; so even so I will only be studying seven subjects."

Wencelada shrugged again.

"Many people in the class are taking only seven subjects. If you are come from an English school you will have to adapt to a slightly different slant in learning Dark Arts and studying the offensive as strongly as the defensive; but I think you will not find the difference especially large. It is the emphasis of the ZP exam that is slightly different in that we have to demonstrate our ability to cast curses as well as defend against them and to curse items. And if you take it higher you have to demonstrate that you can cast the unforgivable curses; and nowadays we have a decent teacher who does not consider the Cruciatus Curse a suitable discipline measure."

"You had one who did? On children as young as us even?" Eve was horrified.

Wencelada shrugged.

"On first years. I was in the second when Jade Snape killed her, and we all blessed Jade from the bottom of our hearts. Some of us fully expected to die before we left school. I had a heart condition that Jade cured; it lay beyond the ability of anything but chanting and I feared taking the cruciatus curse in case my heart burst. I'm glad she instituted chanting classes for us too, as well as teaching Dark Arts for a year. She's as great as her father in my opinion."

"Her father isn't great at all; he's a nasty man with nasty ideas and he thinks that gobbo tripe and half breeds ought to have as much chance as people!"

"As I said we'll agree to differ on that score" said Wencelada firmly. "And I wouldn't be too offensive in your speech about either goblins or Professor Snape in the hearing of any Marauders; they might just take offence and decide to single you out for retribution. And it might be funny for anyone watching but I doubt you'd enjoy it."

"Marauders? HERE? Why I came here to escape Marauders! How can there be Marauders in Durmstrang?"

"Why because Jade Snape instituted the idea as a means to fight against the bullies of Odessa of course!" said Wencelada "And to oppose their antiquated and risible ideas… which I'd better not say any more about as you appear to be of their opinion. Well, I hope you settle in and make friends; I shan't be one of them. I'd listen more than you speak at first however because such is becoming for one who is new unless they are able to make an impression. There is a free clutch of lockers over there to store any hobby kit and story books you want; the lock is activated with your wand and thereafter only opens to the touch of your wand, though as you are English I expect you don't bother much with a wand and can do it with force of will alone."

"Not all English cast without a wand" said Eve sulkily; having never learned to do so.

oOoOo

One thing Eve DID enjoy was moving from the equal bottom of the class in Prince Peak to just on the middle or slightly above in most of her classes. She did NOT enjoy the fact that she ended up sharing a desk with a Hortensia Slickstrup, a Danish girl, who had been left to her own devices because she was not popular; and who seemed to think that she had every right to push the new girl around and to sneer at her for being inferior for not being of the Germanic races.

And as Eve had not been taken into the close set of the four blooded and friends, the boy Vladimir Chernykrov took delight in pinching and poking her when he could, twisting her arm and wand-burning her. Eve had no idea anywhere could be so rough that such things were permitted! And some of the punishments were harsh too; Wencelada's friend Axel was caught fighting with Chernykrov by the big and frightening Professor Nagy when he was early to the classroom and both boys were told to bend over the desk for a blow from a ruler; and Eve knew she should speak up, that Axel had in fact stepped in to stop Cherynykrov bullying her but she was petrified of Professor Nagy.

"Sir" said Grisilde Stengel "Von Rabe was stopping Chernykrov hurting the new girl."

Nagy turned and fixed his piercing gaze on Eve.

"Is this true?" he demanded.

Eve swallowed hard and nodded.

"Yes sir" she managed.

"You should have spoken up earlier; how would you feel if I had caned a boy on your behalf?" rumbled Nagy. Eve was scared. She was even more scared when Chernykrov, still bent over, mouthed 'I'll get you for sneaking' at her.

"You will NOT Herr Chernykrov" said Attila Nagy who had seen the boy move and guessed his motives. "And for that you will have an extra stroke; one for fighting, one for acting in a way to incite fighting and one for threatening Fraulein Cherrytree; and then you will be accepting a delayed action curse that will take effect if you lay another finger on her or on any of the girls in your form or any younger child. I trust I make myself clear?"

The answer was muffled; and then there were several muffled howls as Professor Nagy caned the boy. Heaving him upright he stared into his eyes, made a pass or two with his hand and nodded.

Chernykrov went to his seat and sat down tenderly.

And Eve felt as though she was in the big Transfiguration master's bad books for not speaking out and went about her lessons like a mouse.

Axel spoke to her afterwards.

"I know you were in a funk; I don't blame you for not speaking" he said "So don't worry; me and my friends wouldn't have blamed you. After all, it wouldn't be the first time I got caned and I doubt it'll be the last. I wade in when people say or do unacceptable things. And Chernykrov is the sort of low-born git who thinks it's okay to hurt house elves and doesn't believe in saying please and thank you to them because he is, in his own idiom, nicultyurniy. Uncultured that is. He's even the sort who'd push human and goblin servants around without the social amenities because he's so low he feels he has to use braggadocio to make himself seem higher, instead of accepting that anyone with manners is automatically accepted as a gentleman – or lady of course – regardless of their birth. He's also plumb nasty and always has been. Chernykrov and I go right back to the first year and I've been caned for fighting him at least once a year ever since because I hate him. Only HE had to sit on a wood chair and I generally get provided with a cushioning charm by my friends; because I have some. Don't worry about him; if he gets someone to hurt you by proxy now he's cursed, tell us, or one of the groups of Marauders. Sitting on bullies is what Marauders do; and us four may have chosen not to maraud but we support. Best thing that ever happened to Durmstrang, Marauding. Sorted out a lot of creeps."

Eve muttered thanks, not sure WHAT to think.

"Marauders cause trouble" she added a trifle sulkily.

Axel laughed.

"Whatever gave you that idea? Marauders fix trouble! Sure when there's trouble, they're in the thick of it but they don't CAUSE it!"

"Yes they do!" flared Eve "They're always playing stupid tricks!"

"Well that's not exactly trouble, is it?" said Axel "Trouble is a creature that's been dead thousands of years that drains people's life force with a cursed knife to keep himself semi alive, and creates inferii out of the remains. That's why marauders practise spells and japes: to go against things like that. They wouldn't let us join in, said we were too young. I'm not sure if I'm pleased or disappointed about that. But the Marauders in the third year were allowed along to deal with the demonologist and his team of dark wizards. I imagine the Prince Peak marauders fought Odessa and the fey and so on; so it's not like it's an odd concept for you. But if the sum total of your understanding of Marauders is that they play tricks I should think you're a rather limited and stupid little girl and rather self-centred too; which doesn't stop Marauders protecting you, because Marauders protect, but if you do anything to piss them off they'll let you know about it."

"It's none of their business!" declared Eve.

"It is if you're sounding off about the sort of people that come under their remit for protection you know" said Axel. "The Marauders here are great supporters of the idea of the subsidised school, for those who are ineligible for Durmstrang."

"Goblins and half goblins and the like" said Eve.

"And the like" said Axel. "Like your parents; I checked your pedigree. You're only barely eligible for Durmstrang and some here would not like you being let in; you're seriously blood-tainted."

"There's nothing wrong with MY blood!" declared Eve.

"But you can't prove pure blood at all; your antecedents seem to have wizardry in the last four generations so you're eligible; but you've blood taint of muggle blood before then. I am quite acceptable; I have a single muggleborn in my line some thirteen generations ago, which probably caused no end of trouble at the time."

"But there's no difference between muggleborn and pure blood; either you have magic or you don't! You're being racist!"

"You little fool" said Axel contemptuously "I'M no racist; I'm just pointing out that such is the attitude of many. I say, if you CAN do magic you SHOULD do magic."

"Oh. That's all right then" said Eve.

"YOU however do not believe that; because you don't believe in the rights of goblins and half goblins who can do magic to be permitted to do so; of the two of us, you're the racist."

"But they're so UGLY!"

"Girl, you're not exactly an oil painting yourself" said Axel "Short and dark of hair, muddy complexion; not a beautiful Aryan woman of long blonde hair, tall, long golden limbs; if we're starting to talk exclusion by looks, you don't qualify any more than for your blood status."

"You're HORRID! I'll report you for being rude to me!"

"Crumbs, you think that's rude? I can be a lot ruder and any professor would still shrug and say 'so what?' to you. What kind of a wimp are you that actually thinks there's a rule against being rude? Especially to a social and blood inferior; which you are. My father's a Baron; I can say what I like to you. Now Odessa's gone I'd probably get a caning if I slapped you about; things have changed since a policy of greater fairness was introduced. But you can't have it both ways. If you want to be a blood snob about goblins you can't complain if I'm a blood snob about an ignorant and stupid little commoner with blood-taint who's rather contumelious in condemning people on looks. You really ARE cosseted in Prince Peak. Listen to me Cherrytree; I do happen to know what you were expelled for, and if you'd done that here the headmistress would have whipped you with a real whip, not just a ruler, probably half a dozen lashes or more before handing you over to the authorities to prosecute. And no I'm NOT going to spread it around, any more than are those few who do know; because you have the chance to start over, so the Marauders who wrote to us asked us NOT to spread it around; but to make sure you didn't do it again. They, you see, have a realistic idea of what would happen to you in Germany and believe it or not are trying to protect you. Now go away; you're a rather sickening specimen and I don't like you."

Eve fled.

She picked a prefect at random; it was Hilde Mundnimbus.

"Please, is it true that there are no rules here about people being rude?" she asked Hilde.

Hilde blinked.

"There are most certainly rules against cheeking prefects" she said "Or did you not mean that?"

"I meant someone in my own class" said Eve.

Hilde laughed.

"Why on earth should there be rules about being rude? Be rude back, little girl. If someone has slandered you or your family, call duel on them; or if you're too feeble for the person involved, tell your tale to a Marauder and get THEM to call duel for you under some pretext; it's the sort of thing Marauders do. A prefect can give advice or break up a fight, but really, the protection of your family name is up to you. Anyone over seventeen is liable for the laws of slander of course, but schoolchild quarrels are not subject to the law unless actual harm is caused or the law is broken. None of us here though would consider any course to settle a slander suit bar duel anyway; we're all from good families. Death duels are forbidden the under seventeens."

"DEATH duels? You fight duels to the death in Germany?"

"Well if family honour is involved, how else would one deal with someone impugning one's honour?" said Hilde. "You're a funny kid, I think you almost expect it to be up to the prefects to mediate in squabbles and tick people off for harsh language!"

"Well the prefects I've known before do so" said Eve.

"Indeed? And I thought you came from Prince Peak that produced Nefrita Von Strang; and she's one tough cookie" said Hilde. "Jade Snape she is really of course, or rather Luytens now she's married. Didn't turn a hair about killing our former Dark Arts teacher who had almost killed one of her fags. Stood up to the school bully and gave as good as she got. He's dead now; decided to join with the Head Girl's wicked uncle and fight the school; an interesting autumn term we had before Zhanargul took the marauders to wipe them out. I doubt you'd even have survived in the previous time; you look like a whiney child and Nachtigall and De Witt so would have delighted in torturing you for being English and looking like a victim. And you complain that someone has been rude to you? Well, Professor Snape DOES keep you on a tight rein if he even regulates your speech!"

"It – it's not like that! Only we're supposed to act as civilised people!" said Eve.

Hilde laughed.

"Well kiddie, you're fortunate I'm considered fairly tolerant; you just called me, a prefect, uncivilised; which THIS time I'll forget. We work on the principle here that all children below fifteen and a good number above it are animals; and let them bark to their heart's content so long as they don't bite. And I do wonder actually if I do Professor Snape an injustice because he's not noted for foolishness; and I wonder if your concept of rudeness is different to his. Like I said, you look that sort of brat that whines; I bet you take offence rather too easily. Now scram; I have work to do even if you don't and you're beginning to bore me."

This school was very different; and deep inside Eve longed for the protectiveness of Prince Peak, not this horrid rough place where SHE was an object of derision, albeit tolerated – barely, by some – for her birth. Eve, essentially middle class, would never DREAM of settling a dispute with a duel! It was so….. well she did not know quite what it was!

oOoOo

Eve spoke next to the girl Aglaia Hallow who was in the fifth.

"I know some of your relatives I think" she ventured "The Hallow-Hellibore boys."

Aglaia rolled her eyes.

"NOT a recommendation to me" she said.

"They're rather rough; I don't actually like them" said Eve "They pushed me around."

"Well your bad for letting them" said Aglaia with a shrug. "What did you want actually?"

"I – I wondered how you coped with the blood snobbery; the contempt for those not pure blood" said Eve.

Aglaia stared.

"What for a moment makes you suppose that I'm a blood-taint?" she said "You cheeky brat! I have pureblood thank you very much; I'M not some lesser being. And if you are I suggest you go away before I teach you a lesson."

She raised her wand. Eve fled yet again; only faster. Even the one other English girl in the school was no ally! It had not before occurred to her that Aglaia had chosen Durmstrang because it suited her attitudes; Aglaia having started there some years before Odessa was overthrown.

oOoOo

The four not-marauders of the fourth consulted; and decided that it was a bit of a reality check for Eve to be on the receiving end of blood snobbery; and to be in a less snug and protective school than Prince Peak, that might give her a better idea of the real world. They would look out for her; but having to come to terms with being VERY small fry in a large pool would probably neutralise the girl somewhat and cow her into staying out of trouble. If she lasted the course past ZP they cynically decided they would be surprised; unless she bucked up her ideas and actually started to think about her own ideas being as absurd as those of a blood snob like the Hallow girl. Well, if she left and did not go on to the sixth, nobody would miss her and doubtless she would meet some equally limited youth some day at the sort of rather shallow parties girls like her thought 'naice' and would produce various shallow offspring who would have to go to Hellibore's Academy since they were unlikely to make the grade for Prince Peak. One accepted that the world spawned parasites as well as protectors.

oOoOo

Term went on; drawing towards the Easter holidays. There was one more match to be played, against the Swedish Gothenberg Giants, Professor Rundquist's old team. Frida Rundquist was greeted heartily by the visitors and Stiv murmured,

"She's not a bad article, let's see if we can't really make an extra good showing for her."

"She means well" said Zhanargul "Yes; we shall play up. Not that we shouldn't anyway."

Xanthippe had played so well in the last match that Stiv had kept her on the team, and Harald Trollkettil was sulking audibly on the stands.

Xanthe dropped a langlock and the new pest-popping pustule curse to give him other woes to think upon; really those kids were quite ingenious, that was two new curses they had invented recently!. Harald was having muffled hysterics.

"Listen Trollkettil and listen real well; and if I think you're listening well enough I'll free you from my endeavours" said Xanthe. "I KNOW you; you'd do any mean trick to get back at Xanthippe for being a better player than you and actually being so because she works harder than you; and if you do you'll have run against not only her, and me but also Zlatko and Zlatka and if you REALLY go out of your way to be malicious, Zhanargul might have to wear her head girl's hat. I know you wanted to show off to a Swedish team as you're Swedish; but perhaps if you'd had less excuses about that game where you didn't save a single goal and had perhaps even admitted to mucking it up you wouldn't be on the bench today. You took one look at the opposition and gave up; and THAT's why you got replaced, so it's your own stupid fault. Now no retribution; nod if you're hearing me."

Harald nodded; he had little option.

Xanthe took the curses off him.

"You Marauders are rotten" he said. Xanthe laughed.

"Because I got my retaliation in before you did something to hurt Xanthippe? Get real; we've been at school together long enough for me to know that you're the mean sort of git who'd do something like steal an exam paper and plant it on her to get her expelled because you don't actually care about blighting the lives of others; and actually you didn't take the obvious course to get reinstated and by the way you're goggling at me you haven't yet figured out what you should have done."

"What?" asked Harald.

"Well, you poor prune, if you'd apologised to Stiv for losing heart, reminded him that you're Swedish and playing against the Giants actually really meant something to you, he might have dropped Xanthippe for this game at least to give you a second chance. But I suppose that was too easy."

Harald stared. The idea of just asking had NOT occurred to him; nor the idea of apologising for his defeatist play.

Xanthe sighed.

"When they have a time out for refreshments I'll talk to Stiv" she said. It might, after all, affect Harald's livelihood.

Stiv listened, sighed, and sought out the Giants captain.

"This is a little complex" he said. "I dropped our goalie because I felt he had a mild attitude problem; but he is Swedish and is desperate to play a home team only the silly idiot didn't think to talk to me about it. There's not a lot to pick between him and my current goalie in skill, only Harald gets easily disheartened which is why I put an optimist in instead. Would you accept a substitution after this break to give him a break? I don't want to blight his career."

The Captain considered.

"Under the circumstances I should be churlish to refuse a countryman" he said "That is in order; I will ask for an extended time out to give him time to prepare himself" he gave Stiv a shrewd look "You do not like him" he added.

"No" said Stiv "It's why I fall over myself backwards to be fair to him."

The opposing captain nodded.

"You are a good sportsman" he said.

oOoOo

Harald was overjoyed when Stiv told him to get his kit on and look sharpish; and then Stiv had to explain to Fraulein Rundquist what had been arranged.

"It is irregular but I am glad that Sven has permitted this" she said "Harald is not, I fear, so determined as some; but if it is his career that depends on it, let us hope that he finds deeper reserves."

"He'd better" said Stiv grimly.

It was a tough match; the beaters were big and strong and fast and Zlatko had his work cut out avoiding them, and his usual trick of flying right between them was too risky. The school team managed to score well for being nimble but the Swedish chasers just bulled their way past Gisela and Sigismundus, plainly intimidating Harald once he had been swapped in. The co-ordination of the school chasers meant that the point differential was not a hopeless business; but the Swedish seeker, a tall, lanky young woman who Zlatko swore could reach the rings if she just stood on the ground she was so tall, was able to deprive him of the snitch by reason of her reach. The school had lost; but it was an honourable loss, the score being less than two hundred apart even with the catching of the snitch.

"If I were you, I'd continue to play your other keeper" said Sven, the captain to Stiv "The boy has perhaps more skill, but it is not all about skill. The girl has the stomach of a true player and so she does more with her slightly lower skill."

Stiv nodded.

"Thank you for confirming what I already believed. But I had to try to give him a chance once I was reminded that he is Swedish."

"It does you credit" said Sven. "You are Russian; do you look to play with a Russian team?"

"I have to say since Russia is still in the grip of Odessa I had rather not" said Stiv. "Is that an offer?"

"I would consult with our coach" said Sven "But you have the sort of honour I like as much as your skill; and the team you run plays a clean match. I will write if I may and let you know if we make a firm offer."

"Thanks; if you did I think I'd accept" said Stiv. He was not so academic that he could afford to turn down a good job offer doing something he enjoyed; he had never thought of courting offers to play, but it was always nice to be appreciated! And there was then the possibility of coaching, or teaching with the new schools that were being started all over when his career as a quidditch player slowed down. Even as a second string player he would have a fair salary; and the chance to play quidditch. Stiv was very glad he had acceded to Xanthe's suggestion.

Harald knew he had let himself down; and that he could not blame anyone but himself for that, and took himself off to brood. Which he had to do alone since he was not popular and had no supporter to cry on the shoulder of.

And that was no more than his own fault either for having made himself unpopular for his didactic views and tendency to malicious tricks.

oOoOo

Eve Cherrytree had observed this whole affair with interest and not some confusion. She spoke to Xanthippe.

"You gave up your place on the team to that loud mouthed boy; he did not play so well as you. Aren't you angry about that?"

"Funny kid you are to ask that; and you English too!" said Xanthippe "My sister was right to suggest the boy have his chance; however much we may dislike Trollkettil he had to be given a chance to make a good showing; he blew it. I thought he probably would; there's a little schardenfreude in that I confess. It irks me that his making a fool of himself made our loss more than I think it would have been with me in goal, but at least it's now demonstrable that it was his fault, so he won't play dirty tricks on me. He being the sort that does. We get some of those types in Durmstrang I'm afraid; petty minded little brats who play dirty to get back as they call it at those they perceive to be at the root of their own lack of adequacy. I suppose you English do not have such things in the so-strict school of Prince Peak; we suffer here from the generations of influence of Odessa, while you English have, I dare say, mostly got over the petty-minded evil of Voldemort and his deatheaters. It will take long for Europe to be so cleansed; there are too few schools and too many pockets of blood snobs. Trollkettil's one of them; he's pure blood too only he goes on about it and oh boy, didn't he create – or so I've heard – over playing Hogwarts school and being in a dormitory with a goblin boy! Silly ass; but Marauders protect silly asses too, and I don't intend to be a professional quidditch player when I leave school, I'm a bit more academic than to have to rely on that! So I could afford to give Trollkettil his break – if he'd only managed to make the most of it."

She laughe a little bitterly, and went on,

"Do I feel slighted that I stepped willingly aside for him and he then made a complete arse of himself flinching from hard quaffles like a little girl? Yes Fraulein Cherrytree, I do. I'm not a tolerant person and I resent a little just how much he threw the match away. I can't say I'd have helped make it a tie but I like to think we'd have lost by a little less and at least made it hard for them to score not the stroll in the park Harald made it. But I should rather feel resentful that he threw back my gesture in my face than guilty that I never gave him the chance to do so. This will be my English training I think, from Jade Luytens; and my conscience as a Marauder. And by the way if that query was an oblique way of warning me that you think he might sabotage brooms, well after what the older twins did to safeguard the brooms when they were first on the team, he'd be a bloody fool. Especially when we Marauders put the same protective enchantments on the musical instruments of the school musicians because a nasty little boy had a spite against one of them and was so lost to shame as to consider attacking his art; being a low and despicable type that thinks only of hurting without considering the fact that a musician or an artist doesn't do what they do for fun but because they have to and that it is an attack on the soul, even worse than spoiling someone's work or broom. Still, if it was your way of warning me, I am aware; thank you."

"I – I know nothing positive" said Eve who had merely eavesdropped on Xanthe hinting at what she might expect of Harald. She did not understand how Xanthippe could be so generous as to give up her place doing what she loved; though the older girl's resentment over Harald's poor showing she was quite able to relate to! She cringed inwardly over Xanthippe's obvious scorn on those who would destroy instruments or – by extension – art; when she had come so close to trying to harm Roseli by spoiling some of her art. If these hard, pure-blooded Durmstrangers – for Xanthippe had said that Trollkettil was pure TOO – thought such things were so wrong she must have been much in error; well she would work through her OWLs, or rather ZP's and then see what her options were. Possibly greater, she reflected, than the idiot Trollkettil.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Term came to an end and most of the children departed on holiday; the exam students of both levels remaining to revise as was traditional in the wizarding world. This meant that Zoltan remained also as the staff had to stay on; so both his father and step mother were still in the castle. Georg and Helga had invited him to their castle but he had written to politely decline since there would be more time to spend with his parents than there would be in term time and he wished to savour it while he still had them to himself.

Cacilia was showing her pregnancy now, though most of the younger ones had not noticed.

Everilda Widder, not one of Cacilia's pupils but still nosy enough to take notice of the Potions Mistress' waistline, could not resist asking,

"Oh Fraulein Von Freyer, will your pupils be bereft of a teacher if you are sacked for having an illegitimate child?"

She cast a somewhat spiteful glance at Stiv, Saula and Hilde, those of Cacilia's pupils who had variously sat on her for unkindness to younger children.

"I beg your pardon Fraulein Widder, what makes you think I should be having an illegitimate child?" asked Cacilia, restraining herself from slapping the girl's face.

Widder blinked.

"Why – er – it seems quite apparent that you are pregnant!" she said.

"Yes" Said Cacilia "But from which of your nasty little thoughts did you dredge up the concept that my offspring were to be illegitimate? Not that it would be any of your business in any case."

"But – but you are a Fraulein, unwed!" said Widder.

Cacilia smiled cynically.

"One of those little paradoxes of professors" she said "Frau Fabeln was not married yet had the courtesy title 'Frau' because she was so old; and those of us who are married within the staff do not consider it particularly efficient to have two professors with the same surname; hence I have not changed my surname to that of my husband, especially since I am the last of my name and wish to perpetuate it; and nor – since it is none of the business of the body of the school – have I troubled to change the honorific from Fraulein to Frau. Now, as you are so well ahead of your revision that you have time to poke your nose into business that is not yours I think you may as well put your very spare time to good use copying out inventories for me; and make sure it is both legible and accurate or I might find less pleasant chores to occupy your fingers if not what you laughingly call your mind."

Stiv looked at Hilde.

"It IS a potions professor thing" he murmured.

Hilde nodded, grinning. Professor Von Freyer could do sarcastic and stern as well as ever Professor Rebet had done!

Everilda Widder had thought she was beyond detentions.

"But – but Professor!" she cried "That will eat into my revision time!"

Cacilia shrugged.

"Perhaps you should have thought of that when you decided to spent too much of that precious revision time pondering on matters outside your own business and spending much feverish thought, since you have very little to think with, in making up a way to speak out in the most insolent and poisonous way you could come up with about your prurient and meretricious mental maunderings" she said.

"But it's forbidden to interfere with exam work!" said Widder.

"Fraulein Widder; you have already been intolerably rude to me. If I choose to punish you for your own actions, it is merely a reaction to your own actions; and so held in law to be your own choice to withhold your own time in revision, though one thinks shame on an adult for being thus in detention. Somehow I doubt you would prefer for my husband to call you out in a duel – as you are adult – or for me to take legal action against you; since I may not challenge you myself for the obvious reason that it is illegal to cast jinxes at a pregnant woman. I pray you, if you would rather face my Anwalt or my husband, let me know in writing at your earliest possible convenience."

"You're a prat, Everilda" said Hugibert Heilligen, who shared two of Everilda's three classes.

"You're such an incompetent your grades won't suffer anyway because the difference between 'dire' and 'bloody dire' isn't that noticeable" said Takeo, who was taking six ZHs with anticipated high grades in all of them, and had therefore some right to comment; though Takeo's view of 'dire' and Everilda's were a trifle different since Takeo mourned that he was a troll when his marks dropped close to an 'E' grade.

Takeo had once got down to eighty nine per cent in Ancient Runes and had been depressed for days, the one class he shared with Everilda; and Zhanargul had asked him dryly at the time if she could have his eighty-nine in replacement for her sixty-six because the homework had been a pig. It was Zhanargul's weakest subject and she normally sat right in the middle of 'E' grade and – like Takeo – had taken severe issue with the very difficult Bactrian passage Fraulein Schreiber had set for an end of term test by way of prep, and the class on their honour not to use references. And Zhanargul had her suspicions about the score Everilda had got, eighty per cent; since Everilda usually sat below Zhanargul in class.

Everilda subsided; she had no desire to fight a duel with any of the male teachers; and assumed that Cacilia had married one of those who had been in her own year, which would have been Clovis Gierek, who frightened her, or Lazlo Ijas, who was said to be really very competent, or Volodya Potishev who wielded the strange and fearsome skill of chanting. And the idea of being sued scared her if anything more; she was a German girl but of low birth and a Von Freyer was never going to lose a law suit against a nameless girl! The concept of retribution in the real world was one that brought Everilda up rather short, as being in trouble with Zhanargul for bullying earlier that year had not; and she put her head down and got on with the imposition for Cacilia, rather sullenly, but without trying to display impudence by skimping. She wisely realised that having gone too far with the potions mistress that the punishment of gutting horned toads might not be considered too childish to impose upon her. And she wanted her ZHs without any further trouble. Had she ever read Uncle Remus she would have known that she 'lay low and said nuffin'' but as it was, she merely did it.

oOoOo

The Dark Arts class were to have an outing; there was to be a duelling contest in Berlin which would feature the top four European duellists battling it out for the prize of European Champion; and the class was to go. There had been rounds taking place all across Europe, and Clovis had contacted Severus to see if he had taken any of his students to the leg in Innsbruck and had been told rather forcefully that on the contrary he had retrieved one of his madder pupils when she had decided to break bounds and go autograph hunting. Clovis had picked up the impression that the young innocent of an autograph hunter had no idea what sort of rough company she might face and had been relieved to be placed in sudden arrest. His ZH students should be more than capable of taking care of themselves however.

He adjured them to stay close together nonetheless and not to wander off.

"Why sir?" asked Hilde.

"Because some of the crowds at such matches can be a little rough on account of how betting on the outcome is big business" said Clovis. "Some of those betting have criminal affiliation and are not pleasant characters."

"Goblins, you mean?" said Everilda.

"Oh there'll be goblins there; some of whom will be criminals no doubt" said Clovis "Though I meant dangerous criminals; the human ones. If that shocks you, Fraulein Widder, that there are criminals in the community, perhaps you are too young and naïve to come."

"I thought all the criminals in society were goblins" said Everilda.

"Then I fear you are in for a rude awakening in the real world" said Clovis "There is a criminal element in all races in society; and most honest people, goblin or human, wish there wasn't. Are you going to grow up and deal with that or would you rather be left behind?"

"I don't want to be crammed near to goblins and criminals; I'd rather not come to the silly thing" said Everilda. Clovis shrugged. He would as soon not have her anyway.

oOoOo

The crowd was rough. There was segregation of goblins and humans; and the criminal elements of each, as Clovis pointed out, congregated at the barrier between the two to do business. Seats had been reserved for the Durmstrang contingent – also close to the barrier – and the spare seat that Everilda was not in did very well for outer robes. The solid scarlet of the Durmstrang robes caused whispers and pointing from the crowd; but Clovis thought that it did very well for the school to be recognised and for others to know that they were a group, and not one was alone.

There were the preliminaries of course; the introduction of each of the contestants,

"From Spain, the national champion, who has fought his way to these semi finals, Diego 'The Bull' Luchador!" introduced the compeer, rattling off a list of the contestant's wins while the Spaniard raised his arms to the crowd. He wore something akin to a suit of lights.

"Señor Carcano will be sorry to miss this" said Stiv.

"Not hardly he won't" scoffed Hilde, who was taking care of beasts to ZH "If I followed enough of his Spanish over this guy, Señor Carcano's opinion isn't repeatable!"

"He does look rather pretentious rather than just a showman" said Zhanargul mildly. "I'll back Señor Carcano's view any day, because he's nobody's fool."

"He reckoned any one of our Marauders and any English over about fourteen would eat him for breakfast" volunteered Hilde "Which may be an exaggeration of course…."

"Or it may not" said Stiv "Our Marauders are really out of the class of everyone else."

"Why then do not the top duellists of Hogwarts win all the world class duels though?" asked Hilde.

"Because, Mundnimbus, they have better things to do than prance about for the entertainment of what appears to be a mostly rather low crowd, save those in the boxes, who are low in another way in getting their thrills from spectating, not fighting for real themselves" said Takeo.

"What he said" said Zhanargul.

"First rate duellists kill dark wizards or teach; second rate duellists duel for sport" concurred Clovis. It was unfortunate perhaps that he spoke in a lull of noise and that the acoustics of the hall carried his words straight to the centre of the room where the duellist was being introduced.

"I hear that snotty teacher – I will take him on and show him!" yelled 'The Bull'. "He dare impugn me!"

Clovis sighed.

"Actually old boy I impugn all professional duellists" he said languidly "But it was a private remark addressed to my pupils and not to you. You don't really want to duel me; you wouldn't be in a fit state for the competition."

Luchador levelled his wand.

"You will fight me in the piste or I will obliterate you!" he howled.

The crowd thought this exciting and were chanting 'Fight! Fight! Fight!'

"I HATE uncertain echoes" said Clovis "Keep vigilant in case my voice was directed to him for some nefarious purpose to remove me from you."

"We will" said Takeo.

Clovis strolled onto the piste.

"I decline to have anything to do with losses incurred by incapacitating El Toro" he said. "Or because he exhausts himself on my defences; I didn't ask to play picador to a big pile of bull."

"You will PAY for that!" hissed Luchador.

"No I probably shall not" said Clovis "But to make things fairer for you old boy I shan't use my wand; I think that's a fair handicap."

Luchador went for him and the referee jumped in.

"Enter the piste!" said the referee. "Wands ready – or otherwise" he added with a sickly look at Clovis "BEGIN!"

Luchador launched the blasting curse at Clovis who blocked it with a wave of the hand, stinging hexes and other jinxes flew.

"Hey, teacher! Can't you fight back?" shouted a voice from the crowd.

Clovis smiled.

"Sure I can, friend, but I'm having to figure out what to do to him that won't kill him; because I don't muck about when I fight, and this poor sap doesn't deserve to be treated like Odessa creeps or liches or demonologists" he spoke levelly. "Ah, I think we'll treat this as a school level duel" and he disarmed then cycled the unfortunate Spaniard through a serious of transfigurations, wrapped him into a green ball with maggots flying out of the exploding pustules, farting uncontrollably in psychedelic colours as the farts propelled him in an uncontrolled way about the piste. "The count, if you please" he added.

The referee made the count as the crowd howled with laughter.

Luchador had not managed to undo himself by the time the count was up; and Clovis bowed punctiliously and jumped off the piste. The crowd, rocking with laughter, gave Clovis a tremendous ovation; to perform such curses so smoothly WITH a wand would have been a slick job and his skill was appreciated, and there was awe as well as laughter amongst the more knowledgeable.

"Hey, you wait a minute!" cried the Spaniard's manager "You turn him back to normal!"

"Oh no old boy" said Clovis "It's under international rules; up to him or his seconds to sort him out, none of my business; after all, I never asked for the fight in the first place; it was HIS idea."

The farting green ball was taken away by his team, revulsion in every line of their body language at his maggots.

A big goblin had leaned over to talk to Zhanargul who was near the barrier.

"Hey, you Durmstrang kids don't muck about" he said.

"We had a little trouble with my wicked uncle" said Zhanargul "The one who escaped from Nurmengard; and then tried to interfere with our quidditch by sending a team of inferii without issuing a proper challenge."

"Lumme, you're the cool bint what was on the Wizarding Wireless " said the goblin "You're a real tough cookie, lady; will yer shake my hand?"

"Certainly" said Zhanargul doing so "And without the reservations I'd have to do so with any junior because I know the sort of things that get palmed in the handshakes of little boys, human or goblin. The exploding maggots spell was the best effort of seven twelve year olds who might have done better attending to their homework than to creative mayhem but that's kids for you. It utilises principles way beyond their years."

"Well strikes me all small boys must be much the same!" said the goblin "Yer a real gracious lady, noble witch; and I feel I can call yer that truthful-like not just ter stay out of trouble."

"Thank you" murmured Zhanargul.

oOoOo

The referee quickly introduced the rest of the competitors. Two were German; one male; one female, Adolph Langstab and Gunnild Blitzendanz; the fourth was a Swedish woman called Göndal Vargsluka.

"I'm not sure I'd want to duel that until I hear it talk" murmured Zhanargul.

"They say" said the big goblin "The only reason she don't use the killing curse is because she can't pronounce it."

"Funnily enough I kind of believe that" said Zhanargul. "I knew a girl who looked a bit like that – a few years ahead of me – whose idea of duelling was to nut people."

The Spaniard came out again, mostly whole, still green and still emitting the odd blast of fluorescence from his nether regions but otherwise seeming to be ready to fight, if only, as Stiv murmured, to wipe out the shame of being made rather more colouric then choleric by Professor Gierek.

oOoOo

The first bout was to be between the Swede and Adolph Langstab. Göndal Vargsluka got off a blasting curse first, which Langstab dodged, and she succumbed to the disarming spell. She obviously had something because she wandlessly managed a shield charm to block Langstab's own blasting curse. The Durmstrang contingent broke into spontaneous applause. The big Swede lifted a hand in acknowledgement as she summoned her wand back to the other.

"That's how she get over not talking so good" Zhanargul's informant told her.

"It's skilled work and takes a will of iron" said Zhanargul "Some of the best of us learn it at school more as a hobby than in lessons. She's actually rather good; there's an economy of movement to her. I guess her looks are against her, poor woman, and this is a way to get on in the world."

The German wizard was more versatile however than the big Swede; and pulled out a jinx that laid her flat on her back held to the floor as though bound there.

"A useful spell for a vehmgericht" said Hilde "Did anyone get the intricacies of that one?"

"I did" said Takeo "We'll run through that one at home, Sensei?"

"Yes, it is rather neat" said Clovis "No, she nearly wriggled out of that but the count has beaten her. That was a good match."

There was a break for refreshments before the next bout; and a lot of side betting was going on audibly, and it seemed that the odds of El Toro's potential victory had dropped rather.

There was a commotion from near the front and a shouted 'STOP THIEF!' from a well-dressed man near the front. A skinny goblin child was leaping seats, working towards the barrier. Clovis reached over a seat, heaved him up by the scruff and dumped him on the spare seat as Zhanargul divined his idea to pick up the robes and drop them again neatly on top of the boy.

"Dammit, he got clean away" said Clovis, staring into the eyes of the man in front "Over the barrier; he's long gone. Still, our friend right down at the front looked like he could afford to have his pocket picked, right?"

"…..yeah…..right" said the confunded wizard.

The robes wriggled.

"Shut up and stay put" muttered Zhanargul.

"You rescued him" said the big goblin in wonder.

"Poor little fellow is skinny and ragged; if he is a thief he steals for hunger" said Zhanargul softly. "Brat, if you are an orphan I shall send you to my friend Jade Von Luytens who runs a free school; if you have family and you hunger for learning as for food I might yet do so but we shall see to such when this is over. I will take off the robes when it is safer and all have forgotten you."

The pile of robes made an acquiescent quiver.

oOoOo

El Toro faced Gunnild Blitzendanz; and made flamboyant gestures with his wand.

The crowd, which was rowdy and inclined now to see the Spaniard as a figure of fun, included a baritone voice that called out

"Man, she doesn't think your wand is big enough!"

There was laughter.

Zhanargul winced; and so too did Hilde when that finally got through to her.

"Coarse" she murmured.

"I did warn you all" said Clovis.

The Spaniard was soon wrapped in glowing green bonds, disarmed and floating, vomiting slugs and the count soon despatched him from the piste. The crowd was somewhat discontented; it had been over too quickly and he had lost too easily for their liking.

There was another break for refreshments, and Clovis sent Takeo to buy ices for everyone. He sent Takeo as being now one of the most self controlled of the school as well as one of the best able to take care of himself. Takeo had a mildly eventful trip being accosted by voluble Spanish and a demand that damages be paid by his school or he would be taken hostage instead.

Takeo raised a winged eyebrow.

"Did you really want to try?" he said "I don't somehow advise it. My skills are but meagre as any schoolboy's might be but I will assuredly handle amateurs like yourselves."

"I'm no amateur!" howled the manager "I used to be a duelling champion until I retired!"

"Please excuse me – RETIRED amateur." Said Takeo.

His hands were full of ices and he was in a hurry to get them back unmelted so he had to provoke the tiresome little man into drawing wand on him in front of witnesses; which he did. After that it was, as Takeo explained, quite easy, and the manager and two seconds were immediately – and simultaneously – hoisted into the air by one ankle, disarmed, bound, subjected to langlock and the tickling curse and the bat bogey hex. Takeo ignored them thereafter and went on his way; he was a man on a mission after all.

oOoOo

The final was ready to begin; and the two Germans faced each other on the piste. It was clear that this was an old rivalry, and they were glad to pit themselves against each other.

"I believe I remember them both from Durmstrang; seniors in my junior days" said Clovis. "And probably THAT would have made them juniors spectating during that notorious match jointly won by Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. They hated each other at school as I recall; I fagged for a Polish fellow who did his best to stay out of the factions. Langstab was a man to avoid."

"Blitzendanz looks pretty hard faced too" said Zhanargul.

"She never was such a cow as some could be though" said Clovis "She was hard – but fair. Rough in discipline of small ones who were in her way, but did not go out of her way to make trouble for us nor choose deliberately cruel punishment; I don't recall her doing more than boxing ears or casting a stinging hex across the palms of those who went out of their way to be troublesome – those who sought to curry favour with Langstab I daresay."

It was a close fought battle; Gunnild Blitzendanz was good, imaginative and light on her feet, with neat, well thought out jinxes that were crowd pleasers as well as being mildly incapacitating. She had learned well from her own junior days, using David Fraser's trick of turning the piste itself against Langstab; and that was her undoing. Glued to the wildly bucking floor, she was then unable to move fast enough when Langstab used the hovering charm on himself to fire at her a curse that made all the Durmstrangers start up in their seats when he shouted '_Torqueo!'_

"Hey, that's only a synonym of Crucio!" said Takeo.

"But technically not the Cruciatus curse; WHAT a casuistry!" said Clovis sneering. Blitzendanz had crumpled in on herself, her ankles stretched unnaturally as her soles were still glued to the piste floor; and still Langstab held the spell on her, calling on her to resign. As Blitzendanz could do little but scream this was hard. It was long seconds before he dropped his wand as she lay half swooning; and the count defeated her. Her seconds hurried on to negate her glue spell and carry her off.

The crowd was split; half of them cheering wildly because they had enjoyed the sadism of the win and the writhing of the unfortunate witch; half horrified at the use of something akin to the cruciatus curse.

The referee announced,

"The curse used by Herr Langstab is not on the list of forbidden spells; it is a win by clear defeat for Adolph Langstab!"

Support too was split; there was some discontent.

Langstab used a sonorous spell of his own.

"Where then is the schoolmaster? Does he dare meet ME or does he prefer to skulk behind the robes of the children he has brought?"

Clovis used the same spell.

"Well old boy, if you're not afraid to meet me after a break to give you time to get your breath back from the effort of not quite using the cruciatus curse I'd be delighted; I have moved on from the time when I fagged for one of your classmates after all; rather than playing childish games like you I got a life. I'll see you down there in five."

"I DO hope your brats will be able to see your mangled body home, big mouth" sneered Langstab.

Clovis laughed; it was a laugh of genuine amusement at this self satisfied creep.

"Oh my dear fellow!" he said "You have SUCH a sense of humour!"

"Well we shall soon see who is laughing last!" snapped Langstab.

oOoOo

Clovis made his way to the front with Takeo and Zhanargul as his seconds. The small goblin boy had emerged.

"What's going on squire?" he asked.

"Langstab wants to defeat our Dark Arts teacher because – did you see what happened with the Spanish fellow? How Herr Gierek's words carried and the Bullshitter challenged him?" said Stiv.

"Yeah; I thought he'd cream some professor type but your teacher's dead hard, AND main funny!" said the child.

"He could lick this Langstab blindfold with his hands tied behind his back and gagged" said Stiv. "He teaches those of us who are interested to cast without word or wand. He'll take him apart scientifically; watch and learn. If we're sponsoring you to school you may as well see how a pro does it. Herr Gierek teaches us so he can be in place to fight dark wizards that would use schoolchildren; he doesn't play. He's fought Odessa; he was one of those at the ministry when the administration changed – like giving you a chance at a wand."

The little boy settled himself on top of the robes for a better view and Jochen, who was good at charms, absently dropped an invisibility spell on him.

oOoOo

"He's a pig" said the white and still shaken Gunnild Blitzendanz as Clovis passed her, where she had been led out to watch.

"I remember from school" said Clovis. "You were all right. I have a score or two to settle with Langstab; though I shall NOT let that interfere with a win if he's hard enough to deflect my best efforts."

"He doesn't like looking foolish" said Blitzendanz.

"That figures; thanks" said Clovis.

He mounted the piste, bowed to Langstab and waited for the referee to call 'begin' after the time-honoured words.

Langstab began conventionally enough with minor stinging hexes and the blasting curse to feel Clovis' shield.

"You'll have to do better than that, old boy" said Clovis, who had been absently chanting himself up a diffusion grid in case Langstab had found a way around the killing curse or just lost it entirely and used it anyway. It helped with other curses too. Langstab said deliberately

"_Torqueo_" as he held his wand on Clovis. Clovis laughed.

"Come off it old boy, I've killed better dark wizards than you without stopping to think; y'reckon the cruciatus curse in whatever form is actually going to trouble me? I think actually it's my turn now. And just to spank you even better for being a naughty boy and disrespectful to a professor, I'm not going to use wand or word on you any more than I did on El Toro. Don't blink; you might miss it."

Langstab cycled through sheep, camel, pig, guinea fowl, platypus, ostrich and warthog; then back in his natural form the tarantallegra curse combined with the honkytonk twinkletoes curse and the boogie woogie bogey bugle curse had him dancing wildly and frenetically to the repellent harmony of 'chopsticks' and the 'Horst Wessel song'. In the middle of which Clovis turned him into stone, frozen in mid dance like a statue carved by a drug-crazed worshipper of the Terpsichorean muse.

"That ought to do" said Clovis. "DO take photographs people; I'd pay for a really good one. Count, if you please?" he asked the referee.

The stone lips of Langstab could never perform any counter curse; but the count was required for form's sake. And Clovis jumped off the piste and waved to those of the crowd who were applauding madly.

"If I were anyone who harboured desire to attack Herr Gierek on the way out" said Takeo with his own sonorous spell "DO take account of the fact that we ARE his star pupils and not about to take any crap from anyone."

"I believe you made an enemy" said Zhanargul.

"I can't think of a nicer person to have as my enemy" said Clovis.

"Herr Gierek!" Gunnild Blitzendanz called "Herr Gierek, you are a duellist above any professional; and I thank you for giving me the only laugh I have ever had at Langstab's expense!"

Clovis bowed.

"You are welcome, Gnadige Fraulein" he said "Had he not used such a curse on you I might have told him to take his foolish challenge and put it where the sun don't shine; but I felt he should be taken down a peg or two. I have the honour to have English friends including the great Herr Potter; and thus I have been taught how to fight, not to duel. As too I teach my best pupils. If you will permit my pupils, they will heal your broken ankles as you have refused Skelegrow to see Langstab smeared I presume; for I have some knowledge of chanting but theirs is superior." Clovis did himself down as he had been putting in a lot of time in learning chanting; but Zhanargul and Takeo were the school experts. And Gunnild Blitzendanz gasped as her ankles straightened and knit and the pain subsided to their chanting.

"If there is anything I can do to say thank you for all you have done, I will do it" she vowed.

"Then take an interest in the free school" said Clovis "Learn about goblins above the crap we were taught by the racists of Odessa. You were always fair at school; apply your objectivity to overcome any cultural revulsion you have."

Blitzendanz blinked.

"That is your request? Very well; I have never really thought about goblins much; but I shall do as you say. You are proven no weakling or bleeding heart, which criticism has been made of those who support goblin rights. I will keep an open mind."

"And none can say fairer" said Clovis, kissing her hand with a flourish.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Takeo had not seriously expected his warning to be heeded by those whose investment in Langstab had just taken a nose dive; unless they had any mandragora available, which was NOT a common product in Germany since the English NEWT students' habit of turning the DADA examiner to stone did not prevail, and nor might one reasonably expect to fall over basilisks. Without prepared mandragora, mature mandrake must be harvested and some six months of preparation would be required. That was a half of the time that Langstab would be champion of Europe; and any products he might be expected to endorse could not use him, nor would he be available for profitable demonstration duels. Such backers as were legitimate would doubtless take legal recourse against Langstab himself; but there were shadier concerns, not least the bookies who stood to lose a packet over the champion not appearing for a long while, and too because so many of the crowd, in impromptu bets, had laid money on the outsider, the mad professor who dared take on the champ.

Clovis too was no naïve fool; and he hustled his protégés out, the goblin lad held firmly by one hand and tucked – for warmth – under his own fur-lined cloak.

They did not leave fast enough.

The dapper looking human was backed by a motley crew; two half trolls, half a dozen humans and a couple of goblins.

"You cost me money, professor" said the dapper man "Now way I see it is you can pay me, or I take it out of your hide. And get some back hiring out these pretty girls" he leered at Zhanargul and Hilde.

"Doesn't this lowlife actually realise that if he laid a finger on us he'd be going up against a selection of powerful people?" said Zhanargul "After all we DO have parents."

"No my dear, he thinks HE's powerful because in his own small and turgid pool he is a large fish" said Clovis. "Coming from a class which does NOT do the Durmstrang experience he may have some limited intellect but has not had the opportunity to train it nor gain the education that would warn him that he is making a big mistake."

"Quit the cackle! YOU'RE the one making the mistake!" ground out the man "Beat them up, boys; try not to mark the girls too UURG!"

He dangled suddenly from the ankle in mid air, bound, disarmed, vomiting slugs, with big white maggots crawling out of his nose and –as was apparent where his robes had fallen back – a selection of vegetables growing where he had normally kept his more private appendages, since the cauliflowers and marrow had rather displaced his underwear. Zhanargul had got creative.

His men threw themselves towards the school group. The half trolls had some resistance to magic, but none to a summoned tripwire; and the rest of the attackers were soon suspended, or bound, or both.

"I think, sir" said Takeo, who had rendered one of the half trolls unconscious by the expedient of a transfiguration of his boot into stone and kicked them in the side of the head "A small demonstration might demonstrate to the followers of this creep just why we should be left alone; I am anxious to try the Jade Wolf curse."

"Please feel free; far be it for me to interrupt a keen student's studies" said Clovis, wondering what Takeo intended, certain it would be fairly ruthless and considering that a rather good idea.

Takeo bowed.

"Watch, ye little fellows and fools; watch and learn" he said, righting the leader.

"'Ere, you can't do nuffin' to 'im; 'e's the big man!" said one of the other humans "'E's gotta real Anwalt and 'arf the Polizei Algemein in 'is pocket!"

"Ah? Thank you for that information that we might pass to the Vehmgerichten" said Takeo. "Aren't you even vaguely aware, fellow, that the odd measly Anwalt and so minor an organisation as the ordinary police are of no concern to us? You haven't got a clue. Your boss, heap big man in Berlin low life. Each one of us, heap big wizard in world-wide shit. You savvy yet, pudding-brain?" he was walking round the leader, who stood helpless – and it may be said, terrified – with his arms out, his feet dangling two inches above the ground. Takeo chanted in the harsh gutterals of Ancient Egyptian; and where Jade had left a portion of the life force in the body of Hedda Schrempf by accident, Takeo separated the parts deliberately. That way he would in no wise be guilty of murder according to the law. And then, with awful deliberation, he reached forward with the difficult partial transfiguration of the hand into insubstantiality to grasp the crime lord by the ghostly lapels and pull his ghost right out of his still living body.

His victim screamed; and so did his bound followers watching in horrified fascination.

"Run, little man" said Takeo "Run; because if you think I can't hurt a ghost you are sadly mistaken. Run away from Germany and never be seen here again. If I see you again I will splinch your spirit and scatter the pieces to every continent."

The ghost ran. Somehow he believed Takeo.

"What do we do with the others?" said Zhanargul.

"Oh they'll be arrested for littering the streets some time I expect" said Clovis. "However I'm putting a magical trace on each of them; if they go straight I shan't hunt them down and kill them. I should think that such a demonstration might be good for their souls and we have to give them the chance of redemption, don't we? Come along, children!" and he strode onward, marshalling his charges. The goblin boy he still held by the hand, shivering with terror but obviously clinging to the wizard's hand with eagerness.

They apparated smoothly to the outside of the non apparating zone and walked inside to the castle.

"Good trip, Clovis?" asked Agata Bacsó.

"That rather depends on your point of view, Agata" said Clovis, dryly. "I'm afraid we got a little more involved in the action that I had intended; first one of the contestants wanted to show off by trying to cream a Durmstrang Professor, then the Champion also decided he could take me. The which was a little irritating but not really much trouble. It was the threat posed to the youngsters by the organised criminals that was a little tedious; not that the outcome was ever in any doubt. Takeo is a very talented young man; I don't have any fears about him being able to run his own school without interference. Oh, and I appear to have a foundling" he took off his cloak, negating the invisibility.

"He needs a bath" said Agata.

"He needs a meal more; I'm taking him to my quarters, Agata, don't fret" said Clovis. "C'mon sprog; and I don't even know your name."

"It's Radagas, sir; but I ain't got no pa no more, 'cos you tooked me away from un" said Radagas.

"I don't steal children; if you have family I'm not about to deprive you of them" said Clovis.

"Deprive? Don' make me laugh, squire! My pa keep me 'ungry enough ter steal fer un" the boy said. "Yer left un danglin' from one ankle wiv the others; cuh, and weren't that sweet!"

"I see" said Clovis "Well a man who treats his son like that doesn't deserve one. Have you siblings?"

Radagas was about to spit, realised he was being scowled at by a number of people, and swallowed hastily.

"Had a sister once" he said "But he made her go out whorin', di'n't he? First time, bled ter death of ut; bastard ought at least to of waited til she 'ad tits!" his face crumpled then he pulled it into a sneer of contempt.

"I think you more manly to express your grief over the death of your sister personally" said Clovis "Your father and his beliefs and attitudes in no wise reflect manliness. Well! You shall be my ward, Radagas; and you shall come and meet my wife and baby son. We'll feed you and then bath you and find you some decent clothes. Have you any idea how old you are?"

"'Bout nine I fink" said Radagas.

"Well when you are old enough we'll decide if you have the extra talent for Prince Peak or whether you should go to the Von Luytens school" said Clovis "Which is run by friends of mine. Come! The rest of you should take a rest; it's been a trifle more busy a day than I anticipated!"

"You can tell he's had an English training" grinned Jochen as Clovis and his charge swept away "All that understatement!"

oOoOo

"Yer wife's a half elf?" Radagas was shocked.

"My wife is a lovely, intelligent and brave woman who's fought more dark wizards than you can imagine" said Clovis firmly "And you'll treat her with the respect of being your guardian and in place of a mother to you."

"I don't hardly remember my mother" said Radagas.

"Then it will be a learning experience for you" said Tildi firmly "You're probably too big to want much in the way of hugs and cuddles, but that's what mothers are for; and Clovis still hugs HIS mother when we visit. You'll have to be careful not to play roughly with Clovis junior, Vissy he answers to at his age, because he is more fragile than you."

"You will, when you get to school, use my surname, Gierek" said Clovis "whether that's as my ward of whom I am patron, or as my son will be up to you."

"Whaddya mean?" demanded Radagas.

"We don't know each other yet; but if we suit each other well enough as a family, then adoption of you is an option to offer" said Clovis "But – pardon me – I don't even know yet if your mind is working furiously along the lines that you could play your cards right and have a cushy life; because if so, you're not a son for me, though I'll stick by my promise to see you all right. I work very hard, as do all of those with whom I associate; and we too expect our children to be ready to work hard, to fight, if necessary to die, for the ideals we believe in. Nobody in the group has died since 1981; but that doesn't mean a few of us haven't been in sticky situations from time to time. Like the time Lazlo Ijas and I came face to face with a demonologist who had bit off a bit more than he could chew raising a lich, and found himself kneeling to the said lich after it wiped out everyone else he had with him. We dealt with the inferii the thing threw at us and managed to lose the lich; and it took most of a year to track the wretched creature down, Lazlo and me being the leg-work men and trailing all over the middle east, the Peloponnese and sundry other places where he might go. It's not all fun and ice cream."

"I ain't never heard of a lich – and yer say, demonologist? There really are demons what people can raise?"

"It's a loose term for what they are, but essentially yes" said Clovis. "If you're interested I can teach you a bit about them, and their associated spirits, it's handy to know how to counter them. And the hardest wizard I know – probably the hardest wizard in the world – that's to say, Severus Snape, reckons that anyone who summons demons has erumpants loose in his top paddock."

The boy's ears went up.

"The notorious Professor Snape?" he asked.

"The very one. If you are bright enough to pass his exams you'll go to his school; unless you prove truculent it seems sensible to send you to the same school we're hoping to send Vissy and any siblings he has. I have high hopes of you, my boy; you trusted me and the kids, and you asked sensible questions and otherwise didn't interfere."

"Like I'm stupid enough to interfere with people who are harder than God?" scoffed Radagas. "You heaved me out of a nasty situation – sort of literal like – and hid me; I take that kindly, know what I mean? Puts obligations on me; like I wouldn't never steal from you nor any of them fancy kids what kept quiet for me."

"You won't ever have to steal again, Radagas" said Clovis. "Though if you're any good as a dip, and you're up for the sport it might be handy checking out the things people we don't trust keep in their pockets."

Radagas grinned.

"WELL now!" he said "Reckon I might be up for that; you ain't mealy mouthed about it anywise."

Clovis shrugged.

"I'd be a bit of a hypocrite, wouldn't I, to carp about a kid who's had to steal to survive when one of the things I do for a living is kill people?"

"Yer really do kill people?"

"Only if there's no alternative. You probably heard Zhanargul mention her wicked uncle; she's a princess and heir to a wizarding country's rulership. Her wicked uncle tried to kill her regularly. We captured him and had him shut in Nurmengard; but some foolish would-be dark wizards broke him out. It seemed unlikely that they could be reasoned with; so we took all the marauders from the fourth year up – over fourteens that is – and wiped them all out. Marauders are sworn to fight and defend; many of the marauders in the various schools right now are the children of the first marauders, the friends of Herr Harry Potter's father. We mean business, Radagas; we are a big organisation. If you stick as my ward you won't have to have anything to do with anything scary. If you become my son, well, it's sort of rather a family business and we all support each other in danger."

"Well, pa, if you ask me, my old pa would poke me into danger to save his own skin without a second thought, nor caring if I lived or died; you already done more fer me than what he ever done warning me what it's like. And if you stands up for us goblins and would CALL a goblin boy your son, well you're real big."

"Very well; there are some formalities involved" said Clovis "Eat; bathe; sleep. Tomorrow is another day and midnight tomorrow is soon enough for you to meet marauders and undertake those little formalities. Which I'll explain to you tomorrow."

"I gotta do some sort of initiation? I ain't scared."

"I'll explain tomorrow" said Clovis.

oOoOo

Radagas could be sidetracked from almost anything with the words 'once upon a time'; and listened in open mouthed wonder to the tale of the marauders, of Harry and his friends, and of the blood group. Clovis ran very briefly over the English experience of Odessa, and told of Jade's infiltration of Durmstrang, and her moulding of a group of friends to help her overthrow the Odessa.

Radagas was breathless.

"And that's all you? And it's about blood magic? And I get to be a part of it? And not never be afraid of dying alone in an alley never again?"

Tildi gathered him into her arms; and the boy did not protest more than a token; and then he started crying.

All the grief for his sister, his anger against his brutal and bullying father and his fears of the things that could happen on the streets of Berlin to a goblin boy flowed out with his tears; and Clovis put his arms around the boy on the other side, with Vissy snuggling in because Vissy hated to miss out on a wuddle.

And when the sobbing had subsided, Tildi told him how Clovis had worn a belt to take her labour pains from her, and how Vissy had not been Clovis' son but that he had taught her a tall form and performed a ceremony to make Vissy his son in blood so everyone thought HE had sired the baby, which made him a true half elf; and how they had performed the ceremony to free elves in Europe from the self punishment compulsion because it was wrong that people of any kind should be so oppressed.

"'E's a ruddy 'ero then, my new pa" said Radagas.

"Yes he is" said Tildi.

"Me ma's not so bad, 'aving ter do that and risk losin' her man and all" added Radagas. "Thor's teef, I got a lot ter live up to!"

"Reckon you'll manage, son" said Clovis. Only the relatively exceptional tended to survive a feral existence; and though Radagas technically had a father, he might as well have been feral. If he could learn good values and morals as well he would work out just fine; and he was resentful enough of his father to be ready to believe anything to the contrary of THAT precious oaf's ideals.

Clovis really WOULD check up on the boy's biological father; who would almost certainly NOT change his ways; and then he planned to kill him. He would have to get Takeo to brush him up on those ancient runes; or at least the requisite Egyptian ones. Having the same thing happen to the goblin crook, who seemed from what Radagas had said to be the bodyguard and right hand man of the goblin crime boss Jade had mentioned meeting in the Kobboldstrasse, would drive the message home; and MIGHT even frighten some of the others into a life of honesty. He had probably better check up on all of them actually; he sighed to himself. Making hollow threats was NOT sensible. And he had at least a reason – the safety and peace of mind of Radagas – to kill the boy's father.

"Are you going to kill my old pa?" the boy actually asked it.

"Yes" said Clovis "UNLESS he really has gone straight; I did say that before I knew he was your father."

Radagas hooted in derision.

"Him?" he said.

"Well I didn't really think he would; but you know, I had to offer him the chance" said Clovis. "Some of our number – me included – come from having been given second chances. We believe in second chances and if they get rejected – so be it. But they have to be offered. The ones we killed had, largely, been given the chance to make good. They blew it. People who resent can be shown a way round it; those who hate blindly are unsalvable. The Marauder code is to be merciful where you can, ruthless when it becomes appropriate."

"I kinda like that" said Radagas.

"You know, I think it would be good to wait and blood you when the other blooded come back from holiday" said Clovis. "There's no big hurry; and it gives you a chance too to learn more, go into it less blind. But I knew when I grabbed you, deep down where it counts, that you were suitable."

Radagas gasped.

"So – if I'd not been suitable – you wouldn't have saved me?"

"Oh yes; but I shouldn't be rushing into adopting you. I'd probably have taken you to Jade's orphanage; she stole the Berlin Kinderhaus and is busy making it nice, having transplanted all the kids to a house in the country. I suppose doing impulsive and quixotic things like that and seizing small thieves is also what being a marauder is about."

"Except running a kinderhaus needs loot" said Radagas.

Clovis shrugged.

"Jade's rich; marauders kind of hold all loot in common anyway. If I took up such a project, people like Jade would find the cash for it" he said "And that means I CAN do right without worrying about being on a Professor's salary with some small family money behind me to boot. I get to use whatever resources I need. It's a bit heady; and not to be abused. But it's there."

"I reckon you must all be real close to be so trusting" Radagas said.

"You'll see when we blood you, our kid" said Clovis.

It was good to have the holidays; Clovis was not revising his students all the time, just available for any who needed it, so he had time to get to know this new son of his; and to introduce him to Zoltan, as a slightly older Marauder. Zoltan could be relied upon to put the point of view of a normal, mischievous but essentially straight little boy; and Zoltan was quite at home with the idea of goblin bloodkin.

Zoltan told Radagas cheerfully about the goblin marauders he had met, and that he was of an age with his friend Ulvik's adopted brother Rainer, or perhaps a little younger; and all about Jade Von Luytens. Radagas also heard about Zoltan's own background, and was shocked that a human mother could be as hopeless as his own father, and as essentially unkind and selfish; and Zoltan said dryly that people were people and some of them were shits. This was a revelation to Radagas, who was used to finding that humans seemed to think goblins the source of all ills, and goblins thinking that humans were; the concept of people being people with good and bad was a novel one. He thought Zoltan rather splendid. They explored together, and met Zaly, the rather wary but willing half elven ward of Kreacher and Polly, who was happy to be more unbending when he found out that Radagas was the adopted son of Herr Gierek the Sacrifice. Zaly was half considering adoption by Kreacher and Polly, but also felt obliged to look after the mother of his human half siblings. Zaly was older than either of the other boys and was working hard to be included in his own age group in the free school; because it was important to let the goblins there know that there were other types of people too, some of whom actually had a harder deal. And Zoltan suggested to Clovis that trotting Polly, Kreacher and Zaly over to blood their adopted son in might not be such a bad idea.

oOoOo

Of course there had to be a fly in the ointment; and as it so often was the fly was Everilda. Everilda was, to be honest, peeved that she had missed the duel and had taken a huff and so not gone; and thus made 'I told you so' noises about the trouble – as she perceived it – with the gangsters that had happened after the duel. Over which the others seemed fairly unconcerned, if rather awed and impressed by Takeo's recreation of the fabled ghost-pulling of Jade Von Luytens. Everilda claimed that she did not for a moment believe such far-fetched claims and that she knew a wind up when she heard one; largely because the idea that Takeo COULD do such a thing was too frightening to accept. Takeo threatened to duel her for calling him a liar; and Everilda backed out quickly, apologising. She had no wish to duel Takeo; she had no illusions over who was the better duellist and by a long way at that. She merely said rather sulkily that it had sounded far fetched and she had not wanted to be caught out by some fisherman's tale because actually killing someone seemed a little drastic.

"You'd have applauded him if you'd been there and you'd been one of us girls that the nasty creature was threatening to turn into prostitutes" said Zhanargul.

"But why would he think girls of good family would do such a thing? He'd know we have family to stop that!" said Everilda.

"No; Herr Gierek explained it. Such as he are so used to throwing their weight around that they have lost sight of the fact that there are actually those who can wield more power than they" said Zhanargul. "They find it difficult to relate to those outside their own experience; and we were not DRESSED as those powerful men they recognise as such to grovel to, for school uniform is austere."

Everilda found it hard to believe; scum OUGHT to recognise that those of a class to go to Durmstrang were not to be interfered with!

When she found out that the group had protected and brought back a goblin child she was incensed; and went to complain to Madam Bacsó that they would all be murdered in their beds by a thieving little goblin brat.

Agata told her not to be so ridiculous; jumping from thieving to murder was even sillier than saying that a nasty bullying girl like Everilda was going to murder everyone in their beds, IF the boy was a thief, which was not by any means proven since there were plenty of stupid people willing to shout thief at any goblin, and a frightened boy likely to run whether guilty or not.

Everilda promptly wrote to the Polizei Algemein in Berlin that a fugitive thief was being harboured by the school Dark Arts teacher; not because she had any particular spite against Clovis but because she hated the idea of some filthy street urchin being in her school.

The Polizist who turned up was definitely cowed by Agata, and very apologetic, muttering about 'duty'. Agata made him coffee and explained that some teenage girls in the throes of exams could get very hysterical and silly and when it was a subject in which they did not shine, sometimes blamed the professor and made up rather excessive claims concerning them. Yes, she said, Herr Gierek had adopted a goblin child, an orphan, as part of the great experiment ushered in by Nefrita Von Luytens; Herr Gierek had been in her class when she was still Nefrita Von Strang and had fought with her against Odessa; would the officer like to see the lad? He was fishing in the lake with his older friend, the son of another of her professors.

Zoltan and Radagas were being taught to cast a fly by Attila; and for a wonder both looked remarkably neat still. There was nothing of a street thief in the well dressed, well groomed young goblin, who had started to fill out on good food so his face was less wizened; for the pinched looks of half starved goblin children tended to give a look akin to slyness to the eyes of many humans, failing to see it as wary summation of a possible threat. They had been solemnly choosing their flies and casting them upon the still dark waters in more optimism than expectation.

"Ever caught trout, Officer?" said Attila, who was in a good mood. He could recognise the look in the eye of a man exhibiting envy; and he was waving a particularly nice confection made of peacock feathers from the tail of one of the peacocks at Schloss Von Freyer.

The polizist was soon casting flies too, and being talked into the casuistry that to do his duty he had to get to know the persons involved in the silly wench's report. Radagas let Attila do the talking. He knew when to shut up; and he knew a good fast talk when he heard it!

It could have caused a lot of trouble; and could have ended in Radagas being hied off to gaol, though Clovis swore he would have confunded the politzist before he'd let that happen. He had, on Agata's advice, stayed well clear and let Attila handle it; though he had longed to run out and protect his son. He did stroll out to ask how the fishing was going, disclaiming interest in it, and commenting that the only thing he'd like to catch from the lake was the kraken, and deal with it in a permanent manner.

"Tush man, nobody's seen it for generations; there aren't that many irritating juniors to throw to it, I expect it's died of old age and starvation" laughed Attila.

The Politzist was relieved that the Kraken seemed to be no more than some kind of joke – he hoped – and certainly did not seem a matter of real concern. He congratulated Clovis on his ecumenism and hoped that the adoption would work out.

"Oh it will" said Clovis, with an arm draped loosely over Radagas' shoulder. The Politzist curled a lip to himself over the silly girl's letter; this boy had plainly been in Herr Gierek's household for months; and why, in any case, would a professor of good standing at a prestigious pile like Durmstrang be concealing a juvenile thief anyway? Whoever had taken the report seriously must have bats in the belfry. Still it had given him a decent day's fishing, so who was he to complain? Indeed he felt quite charitable to the Junge Gierek for such a pleasant assignment; he had no particular animosity above that of any of his kind towards goblins, though he did not like them much and though the idea of educating them absurd; still, either it would be seen to be absurd when they failed exams or he would have to admit that there might be clever goblins. And as the goblin boy was taking lessons in the difference between charms, transfigurations and enchantment – definitions a polizist who had never had much of an education was glad to listen to as well – from the human boy and seemed to be following, Herr Gierek had presumably picked himself a clever one who wasn't so clever that he was about to exploit him. And perhaps young enough to train out of the usual sly and thieving ways goblins tended to fall into. The politzist was a product of his times and training; and would have even considered himself fair and tolerant.

oOoOo

Everilda was absolutely flabbergasted to find out that Clovis subsequently refused to give her tutorials; and told her that she was lucky that he had not slung her out of his class entirely for daring to interfere in his family; and as she had wasted his time enough in such foolishness, he was not going to permit her any more of his time with her lack of understanding because she deserved none of it.

Everilda complained again to Agata that Herr Gierek was supposed to help her out; and was informed coldly that the staff gave holiday aid on a voluntary basis and that if she even dared THINK about any ill-conceived retribution for what was only her just deserts over a nasty piece of spite she would find herself expelled and unable to apply her inadequate mind to any ZH's.

"I don't see why you put some stinking goblin brat over a human of good family" whined Everilda.

"I put my staff over a wretched student who has always been something of a troublemaker my fine young lady" said Agata grimly "Because I'll be shut of you after the exams – or before if you continue in this vein – whereas I do NOT want to lose a Dark Arts teacher who appears to be maintaining the fine standard instilled by Nefrita Von Luytens, a standard that has never been reached before. Now go away before I lose my temper with you!"

Everilda went; there was nothing for it but to sulk.

Had she been expected to be in close proximity to a goblin child, as Zhanargul pointed out, it might have been more understandable; but as an example of extreme poor prunery, Everilda was quite the poorest prune ever.

oOoOo

Finally the holidays drew to an end, with Radagas feeling that he belonged and that his previous life had just been a nightmare, and his new home just a part of him. Pa Clovis was so hard, and Zoltan was really cool; and though he was nervous about meeting Zoltan's friends he kind of looked forward to it too.

Then large groups of children returned laughing and shouting to the castle; and that night various of them convened in the Marauding room, as too did Polly, Kreacher and Zaly.

The blooding ceremony was solemn; not made a joke of by the boys as Radagas half thought it might be; and as his blood sang with theirs it was a revelation just exactly what the whole concept meant; just how many had committed to this step; just how many were there to be his brothers and sisters, to support him, to love him, to be a family to him in a depth of feeling that transcended any normal meaning of the word family; and he was of them and to betray them in any way would be like a physical pain.

Cacilia was in charge of cocoa afterwards, which she claimed was traditional and traditionally the task of any potioneer in the group. Polly had made cup cakes and they feasted after the ceremony and went to bed with that wonderful loving lassitude that was all a part of a blooding. And Radagas was glad that Pa Clovis had waited for the others; it was so perfect to know them all face to face as well as to feel them, these big boys and girls who were not scary because they were his kin!


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Long evenings were an absolute magnet for mischief for those children whose bed time was before it was properly dark; though it may be said that the late night soft ball hurley match played by the Musical Marauders on the roof did cause enough unintentional noise to be investigated and the seven culprits spent, as a consequence, Sunday afternoon in bed to catch up their disturbed night. This was a dreadful punishment and the seven – especially Bronislava whose confinement to bed was solitary – swore never to be caught out of bed again. The operative word was, of course, caught.

Various feasts were had, goodies for the same having been procured by various groups over the holidays; and the roof might be expected to be a popular venue, once the mischief of the marauders in the second was bruited abroad, being out of immediate sight of the staff or prefects. Zoltan's erstwhile fellows, Felicks Knapp and Herman Langstab – only a distant relative, he declared loudly, of the Duelling champion – made a killing in sweeties for themselves and their dorm mates, being prepared – if hired – to stand and keep cave for various illicit groups taking advantage of fine summer evenings. Their dormitory mates covered for them cheerfully, using a mixture of bunched up bed linen and illusion to make it seem that all the beds were properly occupied.

Despite junior forays classes went well enough; and Cacilia for one had a small and adoring disciple in Liselotte Brandt, one of the least able potioneers, Cacilia thought, in the history of wizarding; because Cacilia had suggested using chanting to cure the child's abysmal squint. There were more knock-on effects to the child's fervent agreement to such a cure than her looks improving; the little girl had enjoyed and been fair at the game of quidditch, but now, with two perfectly functioning eyes she bid fair to become rather good. Which as she was no great academic was probably just as well. And too Liselotte worked harder than anyone for Cacilia; and Cacilia, aware that the famous Lionel Dell had managed to pull up from being a danger in the potions dungeon to taking it to NEWT by sheer hard work, shared this story with the little girl and encouraged her to be methodical and to take things at her own pace.

The Musical Marauders meanwhile came up with another plan; that of digging a tunnel to somewhere else illicit. It would, they agreed, take some years of planning, library work and careful preparation; not so much the digging but concealing their labours, and where the tunnel came out at both ends. Magic took care of pit props because one could turn the tunnel into stone as one went – the spell _duro_ having been found in library work – and _defodio_ the digging charm was already well known to them.

"What we want" said Zoltan "Is a maze; because having a maze would be well cool anyhow and we can have magical shortcuts through it that are marauding secrets and too we can have the tunnel come out in the centre, and then have a big bit of wizarding space that we go to for illicit doings."

"Or we could just learn about wizarding space and open a bit with a secret entrance somewhere in the castle" said Lindhard.

This was voted far too easy and a trifle poor spirited; but Lindhard's subsequent suggestion of needing Parseltongue passwords was passed as cool.

Zoltan got on well with Madam Kluba, the Herbology Professor, after having asked sensible questions; Kunigunde Kluba had checked old documents and discovered that indeed the planting patterns of the parterres had been undertaken with a view to encourage growth through pattern magic. She had set about reproducing the proper patterns, some of which had been lost by more recent herbologists, in their misunderstanding of the reasons for the parterres. The musical marauders had been volunteers in this work, not so much because they loved gardening – as a whole they did not – but to learn about pattern magic. It was based, as Sigismund pointed out, on the sigils of power and was worth studying. Frau Kluba was grateful for the help and so when Zoltan approached her asking if he and his friends might make a maze to study pattern, and use the living growth of significant plants in its hedges she was enthusiastic. The marauders intended to use runic association anyway; it was another defence of the castle in a way. Indeed they planned to make the maze able to project so the only way to the castle was through it in times of need. Just in case; and bearing in mind that there were fey on their doorstep who could be constrained by geas to have to traverse a maze. It was an ambitious project with magic that was, as they freely acknowledged, beyond them – as yet. But they could not impose magic on a maze until a maze they had, and even with magic and dragon's dung, hedges took time to grow. They chose to grow yew too, a slow growing wood with much magical significance, interspersed with hawthorn that could be tapped to reveal fey magic. And as Zoltan said, if it was up to younger siblings, or even their own children, to complete the project, well it was still worth while.

Hence the musical marauders could be found in much of their summer leisure hours gardening, having plotted out their maze based initially on an intertwining of the Ehwaz rune and the Eihwaz rune, both of the Elder Futhark, signifying respectively partnership and defence, which more or less defined what marauders were. Ehwaz was also the symbol for horse or transportation, which would aid the movement or apparent movement of the maze; and Eihwaz was the yew, which was one reason for using primarily yew in the growth of the hedges; and too the Merkstave, or reverse of the rune signified confusion, destruction, dissatisfaction and weakness, excellent negative things to confund, destroy or weaken the will of those they did not want in their maze. The reverse of Ehwaz needed more work; but it could be used to set up a restlessness and feeling of being confined to discourage from staying those who were not wanted. On due consideration they placed the Ingwaz rune as the centre; a place to rest, take stock without anxiety and freedom of choice. Naturally there were many other paths between the three runes; but they were joining paths, less wide. There was some discussion on using the Uruz rune too, tapping its strength and courage; but the Merkstave included rashness and callousness; and there was too much tendency towards that in the Durmstang psyche, as Bronislava pointed out, to risk it being turned against marauders because whilst unlikely to be confused or disheartened or to do anything but ignore claustrophobia from the negatives of the other runes rashness WAS a fault marauders could be pushed into; and the creed of protection might come too close to 'for the common good' in the hearts of over-enthusiastic crusaders. And the Ingwaz rune used in opposition could be interpreted as toil and labour, which was no bad thing. They did decide to fit in the Raidho rune signifying travel to help enhance their ability to shift the maze about – and because they had room on the plan they were making – because it also covered the larger perspective as well as the dance of life, which kind of covered chanting and music in magic. And it would be easy to use it in Merkstave to apparate enemies to some underground chamber where its reverse properties of immobility would confine them. They steered very clear of Berkano, that controlled relationships; there were enough sillinesses amongst the big ones over looove without encouraging THAT. Likewise any other rune that might even vaguely pertain to fertility.

What they also discussed was setting up various other surprises in the maze; such as the equivalent of the fabled room of requirements that Hogwarts Marauders had spoken of; and defensive surprises for potential enemies. As well they would have open places with benches that were pleasant to be in, because it was a gift to the school as a whole, not just a marauding tool; but it should be shrouded in illusion, or rather repelling magic so that the way through could not actually be seen from above to stop people cheating. Naturally they would make a marauding map.

They used chanting to speed up the growing of their hedges, and as Beryx put it, skanked some help from a few of the free fey in return for a bit of education; and by the time the exams were approaching, the hedges were quite nearly five feet high, and harried exam students were glad of what Scholastica Uccello called 'piazzettas' to sit in a pleasant nook to read. Pots of pretty flowers cheered them up too; and the second years were much praised. They decided to look smug and claim an interest in mazes rather than be in any wise honest about their excellent intentions, and carried on planning an oubliette underneath the triangular piazzetta in the centre of the upper part of their Raidho rune, and a variety of places wherein wizarding space might be opened up by use of Parseltongue through otherwise innocuous archways; and argued over where exactly to place their short cuts. In the end they decided that straight across the Ingwaz rune in all four directions by direct transfer through certain points again by password; and a large wizarding space to lie below the large platz – as it was in German – in the middle of the Ingwaz rune. They would see about giving it requirement status when they knew more. And over their years at school, statues giving unwanted advice with secondary purposes might be installed; and other interesting features. Like, as Corneliu suggested, topiary horses as being appropriate to the Ehwaz rune that could leap down and trample intruders. Naturally he also suggested that statues of musicians and Pan with his pipes might be readily enchanted to play, on command, appropriate music say to lead people astray; and the rest of the group solemnly felt his head in case such an excess of good ideas was likely to bring on brain fever.

This ended with a scuffle and rather a chase to retrieve and return to the right heads several ears and eyebrows; that necessitated a bit of swapping around when Zoltan found he was wearing one of Beryx's eyebrows and Sigismund had one of Lindhard's ears; and vice versa. It had been a bit of a mad scramble because of scrapping outside and Bronislava's eyebrows had taken some retrieving when they had roosted in a tree.

All of this was nothing to get in a tizzy about however, any more than muggle children take much account of bumps and bruises and they went in to supper amicably and feeling very satisfied with themselves.

oOoOo

"Very nice work you kids" drawled Zlatko "Runic stuff and all – me being able to tell my runes apart before you put the repelling charms up – so what's the plan?"

They told him; and it may be said that Zlatko was impressed and said so. And this was REAL praise.

"So how did you grow so many yew trees so damn quickly?" demanded Zlatka.

"Well we asked if any of the free fey had plant magic" said Bronislava – it had been her idea and she was rather proud of it – "So we taught them the protective charms they wanted to know and they showed us how to speed stuff up; and did a lot of it for us, taking cuttings and just making them grow roots right away. It needed oodles of fertiliser to get them to go that fast! We were just going '_accio_ unicorn dung' more or less constantly for a while, and then they showed us how to encourage them to grow; it's not an ageing charm nor an increasing charm but there's elements of both in that. And we didn't have the inherent talent to do that right off so we turned it into a chant and then it went dandy. I don't, right now, want to see another yew bush in my life."

"What about pruning?" asked Zlatko.

"We set up a line" said Zoltan "Which was more trouble in the short term but less trouble in the long, and when the thing needs it, we activate it with a word and anything growing through the line is hacked off short and automatically piled up outside the maze. We thought about vanishing entirely but just in case of accidents we thought it might be a good idea to have anything cut off able to be collected. We MEAN to do it while nobody's in the maze but if someone's in there as shouldn't be, and is say peeing against a hedge…."

Zlatko winced.

"VERY wise to have the safeguard" he said "You can always vanish the pile of clippings at your leisure. I say, your ambitions are really er, well ambitious but good luck to you; and if you need help or advice, us older types are always willing to do what we can to aid younger groups."

"We want to do it on our own; no disrespect to you" said Zoltan.

"Yes of course you do; I meant in terms of pointing you at an appropriate book if you were stymied" said Zlatko. "I shouldn't dream of butting in on your endeavours; tempting as it is. You kids have style and panache; and I don't say THAT lightly."

The musical marauders went off glowing and wondering where they could get statues.

Corneliu grinned.

"We could always ask Professor Gierek to go to more duelling contests and steal his contestants?" he suggested "WHAT a laugh the picture in the paper was of that Langstab fellow balancing on one leg and pulling such faces!"

"How to make enemies and have fun too" said Sigismund cheerfully.

oOoOo

And before long the exams were on the oldest in the school; Ancient Runes ZH was to be taken by Zhanargul, Takeo and Everilda. And Zhanargul and Takeo grinned to find a long passage in Elder Futhark after having brushed up to see what the kids were up to – Zlatko was not the only one who noticed – and as well as the translation had to answer a question on what hidden meaning might emerge if the Merkstave meanings applied. There were questions on the Ancient Bactrian passage that Jade had elucidated two years before; and a short passage to translate from German into Ancient Greek, Hieroglyphs, and Linear B, with comments on what concepts were easy and what were hard. Zhanargul struggled a little but Takeo enjoyed himself, and Everilda persevered.

oOoOo

Only Takeo was taking Arithmancy; he enjoyed the paper, though he said it would be deucedly unfair to any candidate who was not taking Transfigurations, as there were three equations of the vanishing or apparating kind with the single word 'explain' to cover them; one was the _evanesco_ spell, one was a partial vanishment of some object weighing about a pound, and one was the full vanishing of a similar object to a place some mile or so distant. And though vanishing magic was covered in ZP level Transfiguration the Arithmancy for it was not. The other questions were, he said, things you could do in your sleep, like calculating probability using the Wenlock series and Waffing logic and the odd maxima and minima calculations, easy calculus, not piggish integration using terms of i like the vanishment problems.

oOoOo

Chanting came next and the ZP students would be involved in this too as it was tested by Herr Malfoy who had come from England to test it. Zlatko and Zlatka were taking this a year early as they really were more than ready; and Herr Malfoy declared that anyone who had taken part in the big Yule chant was exempt from the practical, having been tested by their partners and observers. This covered Xanthe and Xanthippe in ZP as well as the Asimov twins, Zhanargul and Takeo at ZH; Saula's parents had not permitted her to come to some foreign chant so she had to take the practical all alone, designing a chant to make a circle of exclusion against ferrets – Lucius having a warped sense of humour which passed Saula by until Zhanargul went into whoops of laughter after the exam when Saula told her about it – and removing the curse from a pair of everdancing shoes that Lucius had unearthed in an attic. The written covered such repetitive chants as had found their way into muggle folk lore and asked for suggestions over why there were such similar chants all over the world. There was no right answer to this; it might have been equally that wizards carried such chants and used them in whatever the local language was by transfer of ideas through the close-knit wizarding community; or it might have been a case of, as one might say, convergent evolution of ideas in separate wizarding communities. It is probably safe to say that of the five who were taking the exam at least three wrote far more than was necessary.

The practical for the ZP students had also gone well enough; Scholastica and Yorick, joined by Jochen, Stiv and Hilde who were taking the ZP alongside their ZHs, could be fairly certain that they had done a good enough job to make sure that no sharks would ever menace the great hall; though as Yorick said, it might have made more sense to exclude krakens. Their written posed them no problems either. The exam was along fairly expected lines, covering knowledge of poetry forms, picking which form to team with which type of curse to be broken, and designing a brief chant to tie a charm to an item if one knew no enchanting rituals. They were well drilled by Volodya, building on a good groundwork from Jade and none of the four found it hard. And that was a ZP out of the way and time to rest before the rest of the exams hit them.

oOoOo

The ZH students had no rest. They had Potions next; and handed in their long potions sealed and signed for by Cacilia Von Freyer and Agata Bacsó; which form of exam had now, so they were told, been taken up by the English exam board too, though the English students were permitted to choose their own potion to show virtuosity. The German students had been set the fire-resisting potion, a tricky little brew that required very precise periods of being rested. This was Saula, Stiv and Hilde as well as a few others who were neither friends nor enemies of the Jade Luytens fan club; and Stiv was just glad that he had completed the potion even if not tremendously well. They were not a particularly potions oriented class; but that was the way it went. Saula and Hilde were very good, Stiv worked hard and took the subject in order to have a third ZH; and the others varied from mediocre to quite good, and might all just about pull off an 'E' on the day if they pulled out all the stops. Stiv just hoped to pass!

The practical involved gutting a horned toad with reference to proper collection techniques of the internal organs; and naming the ingredients required for a known blended poison and the order in which to use them. This was moderately straightforward and even Stiv felt happy about how he had done.

The written was fairly straightforward; questions on Golapott, an essay on the potential dangers of Amortentia and questions on what potion would best counter its effects, and a series of printed Malfoy lines, a new innovation in German exams, displaying the results of the Revellaspell with questions on which ingredients had been left out and what the potions were supposed to have been. Stiv had groaned inwardly and guessed wildly. It may be said that he was well poked by Hilde when it transpired that, unable to identify the draught of peace missing its syrup of Hellebore he had declared that it was a draught to aid digestion and was missing the chopped heart of a chomping cabbage.

"Which" said Hilde "Wouldn't even GO into an indigestion cure; it's used in skin creams. It's the digestive tract of the chomping cabbage that's used in appendicitis calming potions and laxatives."

"Like I care now it's over" said Stiv. "Well I had to put SOMETHING; and I might have been right. Of all the potions we've covered I reckon I have a better than one in twenty chance of getting each of the right from recognising some of the stuff in them; so maybe I haven't lost all the marks in that section. At least I know my Golapott."

Hilde sighed; she thought it had been such a lovely easy exam she couldn't see how her friend had struggled!

oOoOo

Transfigurations was a standard long paper of three essay questions and a short paper of paragraph questions. The top students were Saula, Takeo, Everilda and Hugibert Heilligen; only two others were involved, because Attila's slightly abrasive style was not to the taste of all, though the class had to admit that he had been far less confrontational over the last couple of terms. Takeo knew why and was glad for his blood brother that his personal life was now much happier.

The essays were 'List the five exceptions to Gamp's Law of Elemental Conjuration with comprehensive explanation on the reasons for each'; 'Discuss the forms of Assimilative Correlation and how they may assist transubstantiation' and 'Explain with illustration the risks involved in human transfiguration'. The short questions covered other aspects of transfiguration and were fairly straightforward. Takeo thought they were easy and came out laughing that the Musical Marauders could probably have passed that written exam. Everilda called him a few names and Saula laughed ruefully and said that certainly Sigismund and Zoltan would probably have enjoyed it but then that was why they were pests of the first water.

The practical was a fairly standard choice of a fiddle, a rock or a piggy bank to transfigure using such assimilative correlation as seemed appropriate. Takeo, who could be quite as awkward as Jade when he put his mind to it, chose the rock, considered it as a mineral and went via a rock transfigured to bear gold and diamonds into a stunning necklace of gold set with brilliant-cut diamonds, explaining that much of the substance of the large rock had been used in the necessity of transfigurational compression of the carbon into diamonds and the shaping to brilliants. It was a really rather masterly piece of work and smooth in the execution beyond most experimental work, let alone beyond ZH. He paused long enough for the beauty to be appreciated before taking the necklace into the required animate form of a snake with diamond shaped markings on its back.

Takeo was like that sometimes.

oOoOo

Charms involved Saula, Jochen and Takeo. There was a long essay on the charms that sealed or discouraged passage; and two shorter essays, one covering Waffling's principle of Extrinsic Alteration and the other on Assimilative Locomotion by Precision. There were short questions too, covering a wide range of charms.

The practical involved planting a memory path into a rat to make it find its way through a maze it had never seen before, and casting invisibility. Takeo thought it straightforward, though the others complained of how hard memory manipulations were.

oOoOo

Dark Arts came next. The written required the students to define both the dark arts and dark creatures, and to write about the unforgivable curses in some detail, and discuss ways in which a wound might be made cursed. Short questions covered a number of dark creatures, descriptions of curses and cursed items. It was on the whole fairly straightforward and of the seven who were taking it only Everilda and Hugibert failed to write too much.

The practical was now one that involved the volunteer prisoners from Nurmengard or lesser prisons; there were three goblins and four humans, one for each student. The humans fell into two classes, by their looks – thugs and sneaks – and two of the goblins looked to be strong arm types. The third had long clever fingers.

Hugibert was first by reason of his place in the alphabet; and he demanded to have a human to work on as his subject. One of the weedier ones spat and said,

"I'm wiv yer on that squire; can't abide goblins meself."

"How YOU feel is entirely immaterial to me however" said Hugibert coldly. His chosen worst curse was the Tarantallegra Aeternum, which when cast would make the victim dance until he fell down dead. He demonstrated the two survivable unforgivable curses on his victim, killed his rat in a flash of green and presented his cursed item, a rather pedestrian garrotting scarf.

Stiv and Hilde were the next two in order and both asked for volunteers; each had one of the strong arm goblins, and declared that the worst curse they knew of was the ghost-expelling curse that they didn't think they would like to cast even if they knew how to do it. They stuck with the water-shunning curse that would lead a victim to die of thirst and the entrail expelling curse respectively, because Hilde knew the counter to the expulsion of entrails and chanted her goblin's insides back to where they were supposed to be. Both told their victims that their names would be passed to someone who would see about rehabilitation. Their cursed items were for Stiv a hat that shouted 'LIAR' when the wearer was lying, and could not be removed; and for Hilde, a necklace that complained if stolen and if not replaced, strangled the thief.

Takeo was next; he caught the eye of the bitter looking strong arm human.

"You know" said Takeo "There is always a way out of the cycle of hatred and aggression. It can be hard; I know this personally. But have belief."

"Belief? What is there to believe in?" said the man. "When the lord ordered my daughter to his bed, I protested; he beat me and took her anyway. When I went to try to rescue her – she was only a child, not fifteen years old – he had me beaten again and imprisoned for rebelling. The last I heard my wife, who was sick, died for not having me to care for her and my daughter displeased the monster who had wanted her and he threw her out of a castle window. Why should I not hate?"

"Because it is better to get even than to get mad" said Takeo. "You will please tell me the name of this revolting lord and your name; and I, who am in a position to see justice done, will see what I can do."

"Graf Ivwald Von Reinstern" said the man "And it is said that no man can kill him; he has magic to make himself immortal. My name is Gunnar of Reinsternsdorf."

"Well that appears then that he may have the greatest dark magic known at his disposal; a horcrux" said Takeo. "So it will take a little extra work. You will come to work for me when you have completed your sentence; and I will see if it cannot be commuted for never having been proper in the first place. And there are worse things to do to a man than death in any case; I might choose for my curse to demonstrate one such thing."

Takeo proceeded to walk around the man Gunnar; chanting cheerfully. And Gunnar shrank and became a house elf.

"You can do this to the Graf?" he squeaked hopefully "I would serve willingly as your elf all my life to have the same happen to him!"

Takeo grinned.

"Oh I have your true name so reversal is easy" he said proceeding to do so. "It is a demonstration of what I might achieve by duelling him, a legal recourse. I would not of course break the law. I fear I must hurt you now; I will hold the cruciatus curse as short a time as possible for the purpose of demonstration."

He did so; and demonstrated the Imperious Curse, and used the killing curse on a rat.

Being Takeo, his cursed item was somewhat individualistic.

"This sword will become as light as a feather and as hard and sharp as diamond" he said "But only if you let it drink your own blood first. What one might call a two edged weapon. It needs about a pint; enough to cause some weakness. The further nature of the curse is that though the wound may be closed, it will open again if the wielder takes a blood-replenishing potion. Without the sacrifice of blood it becomes, when used, as heavy as lead."

"A complex item; truly the curse is in the mind of the user who must choose the advantages and disadvantages it brings" said the examiner. "Very advanced. And may I say, my boy, how pleased I am to see you much more self possessed and at one with yourself than you were last time I examined you; you have come a long way."

Takeo bowed.

"Largely due to the help I received from my Sensei, Nefrita Von Luytens" he said softly.

Zhanargul had a sneering bully-boy who leered at her. Zhanargul, who needed help with complex transfigurations, locked him in place with the full body bind and inscribed the runes Perthro, Berkano and the Merkstave of Laguz around him, explaining conversationally that the first two were associated with femininity and fertility and the third was the negative of a fertility source and healing, bringing fear and withering since there was something of his that definitely required withering. She had enough legilimensy to know he was a multiple rapist alongside his other crimes though not convicted of it since his victims had been weak and powerless. Then she chanted in old high German and with a falsetto screech her victim turned into a woman.

Zhanargul smiled brightly, negated her body bind, and demonstrated the other two required curses on him before despatching her rat.

"Are you going to turn him – er her – back?" asked the examiner.

"No I don't think I am" said Zhanargul "He's not so likely to hurt as many people in this form; I believe he can stay like it unless he can find a sufficiently competent curse breaker."

As she had extracted his name under legilimensy and used it to tie the chant in, this was actually highly unlikely. Zhanargul was going to rule one day; and she knew that just occasionally absolute ruthlessness and implacability were required.

Her cursed item was one she planned to use in her own judicial courts; a ring that could not be taken off save by a person of her own bloodline; that compelled the wearer to tell the absolute truth.

Everilda went next and insisted on the remaining human, a timid fellow who had once worked in the Ministry and who had been unable to resist bribery. Being cursed would bring HIM to a release date and he was eager to be out of prison which was rough and frightening. Everilda being Everilda, the worst curse she knew outside the Unforgivable ones was the blasting curse; and the examiner put up a barrier to protect the unfortunate subject from death. She wielded the Cruciatus Curse viciously – she was still sore that Herr Professor Gierek put some goblin urchin before her, because he could surely never really think of such trash as his son – and the Imperious Curse unimaginatively and equally painfully. Her cursed item was a pair of everdancing unremoveable shoes.

Jochen was last; he smiled solemnly at his goblin victim.

"I'll try not to keep you unhappy too long, Mein Herr" he said; which form of address made the goblin's ears go up.

Jochen did not chant; he was however very good at charms and set his victim to levitate and then spin through every point of a sphere randomly.

"I'm keeping it slow because if you did it fast enough it would start to cause physical damage" said Jochen. "A refinement would be the addition of flashing lights and high pitched noise, which is enough to drive most people to madness in a fairly short time; certainly if you kept it up for a couple of days. Do I have to torture the poor fellow with the refinements?"

"A few seconds demonstration will suffice" said the examiner; and Jochen nodded and complied. Then he brought his giddy victim to rest. He completed the rest of the test and presented the examiner with his cursed item. Jochen was also good at enchantment; and he had produced a bracelet. It was golden, and very fine with chasing along it.

"It is, once on, impossible to remove" he said "But every time the wearer does something mean or spiteful or downright bullying it tightens; eventually, if they don't learn, it would cut the hand off at the wrist. For every altruistic act it loosens. This can alleviate the pain caused by initial tightening; and I have also programmed it to fall off once it has loosened a certain amount. I suppose you might call it a teaching aid for the incorrigible bully."

"Subtle" said Herr Bergen, the examiner.

"We've had enough ruddy bullies here who do NOT seem to learn" said Jochen "And the personal boggart curse is one to bear in mind, but possibly a little extreme."

He had to explain the personal boggart curse; and earned bonus points for it had he but known it. And like Stiv and Hilde assured his victim that he would be found a job when he came out.

"'Ere, Squire, what abaht us Yumans? Ain't we ter be found jobs?" demanded Hugibert's victim "Why let those little bleeders of gobbos have all the goodies?"

Jochen stared.

"All those of you who assist will be given help" he said "That should have been made clear; and if you spurn it that will be your problem. But if I were you I'd learn a few manners and too stop being so racist or you may find yourself fired almost as fast as hired. I believe you need a small correction" and he filled the man's mouth with foaming soap. He did not trouble to resort to either wand or incantation. Technically it might be an advanced summoning spell; but to Jochen it was just a corridor curse.

He was dismissed and went on his way happy enough with what he had done.

And Herr Bergen was as impressed as ever with the standard; and on the ingenuity that made cursed items almost light arts in their use.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Jochen's next exam was Enchanting; he was not so good at this as Hugibert though he was still fairly good. There were a few others also taking it; and the written consisted of a long essay on the use of the enchantments on brooms and how the choice of broom wood and twig wood affected the performance; followed by a section which listed three wizards with their birth dates and personality traits and asked for suggested wand woods for them and the reasons. The wizard with an affinity for fire spells and an optimistic nature who was born on the last day of May was an obvious contender for Hawthorn; his birthdate, in the lunar month of Huath, governed by Hawthorn, offset any bad luck traditionally associated with the wood, providing the wood had been gathered on Beltane. He suggested a dragon's heart string or salamander's spinal cord core.

The witch who was a seer might at first glance have a choice of two wand woods; Hazel or Willow which both had affinity with divination. She had not however been born in August – Hazel's month, Coll – or between the middle of April and the middle of May – Willow's month, Saille. It would then be other factors. Ah, it said she was a scholar and liked to place her prophesies in obscure rhymes; that then had to be Hazel, governing inspiration and poesy. An augury feather quill was the obvious core.

The wizard who wanted to fight for the rights of others, and who wrote his own music and played it on a flute was undoubtedly Poplar; he would need resilience and endurance and protection; Poplar was associated with the air, if not so firmly as Elder was, still sufficiently so for the flute-playing wizard; and too the governance over inspiration of Poplar fitted. Jochen wondered if Jade Von Luytens had a poplar wand; it would suit her. Professor Luytens might well have something like a unicorn tail hair because she was such a superb healer; he would suggest that and also a jobberknoll feather because if the wizard was an academic and inspired, having a good memory and access to memory charms might not be a half bad idea.

There were sundry short questions and then the written was done.

The practical involved the enchantment of three common items, a pack of cards, a bottle and a pair of shoes. Jochen made the pack of cards self-shuffling, the bottle self-filling from a directed source and the shoes able to change size to fit any foot and, moreover, to change as one wore them if one's own feet swelled. Next he had to core a wand; which was tough but he managed it. The final task was to make a wheelbarrow fly with bonus points for the comfort of the ride. Jochen thought it had gone as well as might be expected. The examiner was only sick once.

oOoOo

Herbology required the collection of flower petals from a Devil's Snare plant; a hellishly ticklish operation. Stiv and Hilde were amongst those taking this exam. Devil's Snare liked it cold and moist and disliked fire; but then, too much fire would shrivel the petals. Even too much warmth might cause damage. Stiv called his plant a 'nikultyurny vnebratchniy' – uncultured bastard – and lit up his wand with radiating warmth to poke at the questing tentacles of the plant, hoping to snatch petals before he was himself snatched.

Both Stiv and Hilde managed some collection of the bluish-green petals without too much mishap; it may be said that two others in the class had to be rescued from their Devil's Snares and so failed.

The written was much less stressful and covered flesh-eating trees, the calculation of the right amount of fertiliser and the proper phases of the moon to sow and gather a variety of plants. And as Hilde said, it could have been worse; it could have been snargaluff.

oOoOo

History was one of Jochen's subjects; and he knew he was a solid 'E' student in this as in most things. Four tough essays were the order of the day, picked from eight, covering European wide History. Jochen picked 'Chart the rise and fall of Gellert Grindelwald with reference to his mistakes' which was a question of quoting Jade but without using the word Wanker; "Explain why the Spanish Inquisition enabled the Wizarding World to flourish' – that was easy; the Muggle Spanish Inquisition had undertaken tests using magical formulae and potion recipes and had determined that since they did not work for them, there was no such thing as witchcraft. He also picked 'explain, with illustration, why the Muggle French Revolution caused mayhem in the French Wizarding world', a time of madness when muggles were so caught up in fervour that often even confundment did not work because they were operating on pure emotion, killing anyone they dubbed an 'aristo' who looked anything but a ragged sans-culotte. Escaping from gaol was easy enough for any wizard but wizards were driven to hide and rarely emerge from the Rue De Sorcellerie and its associated streets; one reason, as he wrote, that many French wizards had a better relationship with their goblins, since goblins were more easily able to mix with the mob and acquire food and news, and worked to help keep the French wizarding world alive. His final choice was 'discuss the effect the age of mad religion had on the statute of Secrecy' wherein he might again mention that religious fervour made animals of some muggles, meaning that control of them was virtually impossible; though they could often be diverted to fight other schisms rather than wizards. It made for a lot of Europe-wide discomfort however and with the suspicions and fears of the superstitious muggles, allied with the reason and science of those who rejected superstition and – very often – religion alike made the decision to hide totally the only one that could ensure survival. For some it had been at first a temporary solution, to be abandoned after a generation or two; but the rise of muggle belief in technology as the new religion to supplant schism and superstition had made that impractical.

Jochen thought he had done as well as he might and was glad to have the exams over and done with!

oOoOo

Care of Beasts was Hilde and a couple of the others; and was the last ZH exam to be taken. Hilde had a shrewd idea why THAT might be and was not surprised to find herself collecting murtlaps on a shore stiff with Mackled Malaclaws. Hilde managed to get four murtlaps, which was better than none; and managed not to be bitten by the Malaclaws.

The written was to write three essays chosen out of five; and Hilde picked 'outline the diseases to be expected in dragons and how to treat them' – Hilde rather liked dragons – and she wrote knowledgeably about such things as scalerot, treated with rubbing the affected area with sea salt, tar and white spirit, and Squabbs Syndrome, when a dragon lost its fire, treatable with hot baths, chilli powder and pepper and four crates of rum daily. Her second essay was 'Describe in Detail the major types of flying horse and their characteristics'; and the third she chose was 'discuss in detail how to move an erumpant from a range too close to muggles to an area that is more acceptable; diagrams will be credited.' This called for a diagram showing exactly where to cast cushioning charms to prevent the erumpant's explosive horn contacting anything and exploding; the method was similar to that used to capture an erumpant and drain the explosive fluid – which would renew itself – which Señor Carcano had impressed upon the class as it was a possible ZH level practical. Once the charms were in place the wretched animal could be hit with a sleep spell which would make it groggy – erumpants were too stupid to be readily affected by magic that could even loosely be described as mind affecting – enabling in this case a _mobilofaunus_ spell to be cast and, if one knew how to, drag it via ley line for greater speed of travel. Hilde did NOT know how to, but she knew that it was possible and so mentioned the fact in the hopes of more points.

And then the most senior exams were all over.

oOoOo

The ZP students taking chanting had already taken it; so that was one less, as Xanthe said cheerfully.

"If you twins weren't taking an unreasonable number of ZPs you'd not have to worry" said Harald Trollkettil nastily "You won't be able to cope and you'll fail them all."

"Which is why on the whole we're straight 'O' and 'E' students in class" said Xanthippe in scorn. "Grow up do, Trollkettil; just admit that your problem with potions will spoil your 'E' average, shrug, and move on. If you must carp at people biting off more than they can chew, carp at Hallow, who plans on going for quantity not quality; as she's taking what the English consider to be a standard nine ZPs."

Most of the class were taking seven or eight ZPs; and Harald, who knew fine well he was only going to pass seven of his eight, resented the fact the both twins were taking ten, and achieved better marks than him.

"You think you're so clever!" he raged "Picked to play quidditch and managing somehow to cheat in your classwork to look good; nobody can get 'O' and 'E' over so many subjects!"

"Funny then how Nefrita Von Strang got twelve straight 'O' grades in Prince Peak" said Xanthippe sweetly "Of course it DOES emphasise academic excellence; that's why poor Hallow had to come here not go to the school where her cousins are."

"I came here to avoid mudbloods" said Aglaia Hallow.

"Of course; so embarrassing to have mudbloods and goblins performing better than you" said Xanthippe "Harald will surely sympathise after his trip to Hogwarts."

"Stow it, 'Thippe" said Xanthe as Aglaia looked furious.

"By your command my glorious sister" said Xanthippe, sweeping her twin a deep curtsey "You types are spared any further fusillade of my phonemic fantasy; it's your lucky day."

"They can't help being creeps, twin" said Xanthe, tucking an arm through Xanthippe's "It's to be pitied, like Spattergroit."

"Only less socially acceptable" Xanthippe could not resist adding. Which considering the contagious and quarantined nature of spattergroit left Harald and Aglaia spluttering still more.

oOoOo

The first exam was Charms. There were questions on cheering charms, on wand motions to go with incantations, on locomotor charms, and on colour change charms. In addition there were some questions on banishing and summoning charms, the summoning charm being _accio_ which brought to the wizard whatever he had called for specifically by name rather than being conjured, loosely called summoned, out of nothing as was a rather advanced transfigurational technique. That afternoon was the practical and each student in turn – going four at a time in alphabetical order – had to still dancing teacups, change the size of one of them then make it cartwheel, lift it in the air, change its colour and then summon it to the hand with the spell _accio_ to demonstrate a practical use of the summoning charm. Only Alexand Amsel, the Austrian friend of the twins, made really heavy weather of it, managing to break all his teacups. He turned the examiner yellow instead of the remains of one of the teacups. Aglaia struggled as did Yorick and too Vighard Sternschappe; but had more or less success.

oOoOo

Next was Care of Magical Beasts. The practical involved cleaning a firecrab, dealing with a chizpurfle infestation and discussing with the examiner the diet of sick unicorns. As Jade had nursed the Unicorn foal the year before, nobody had any problem with that part, though Adolph, Alexand, Vighard, Aglaia and a number of others had to be treated for burns from their firecrab. The written covered brief questions on a wide number of creatures to be found in the wizarding world, their description, habitat, habits and any peculiarity that made them worth mentioning. Nobody was a high flyer in this class; but Professor Carcano made his lessons so fascinating that nobody was likely to fail.

oOoOo

Following Care of Beasts was Dark Arts. The written exam called for the definition of dark creatures; and called for details on listed ones, recognition and how to deal with them, and the recognition of jinxes and curses by effect; this was an exam in which the greatest number of marks lay in the practical. And for that, the candidates must resist two curses, cast two, and curse an item chosen out of three, a hat, a pair of shoes and a necklace. Clovis had ruefully told the examiner, Herr Bergen, that the class fell into two halves; the really rather good, and the pedestrian plodders who neither wanted to use the dark arts nor oppose dark wizards.

"And fortunately my high fliers plan to fight dark wizardry" he said cheerfully "Though I dread to think what they'll do to their cursed items."

"I always like to see something out of the ordinary" said Herr Bergen, who enjoyed examining the disciples of Jade Luytens.

Fortunately for Herr Bergen the first on his list was Alexand Amsel. Alexand made the hat lay a truth-telling curse on the wearer, so he could speak only the truth and had to tell the whole truth. Hence Herr Bergen started babbling about how good he expected the better ones to be and how clever Jade Luytens was, so Alexand rapidly uncursed the hat because he had no desire to get an unfair advantage when Herr Bergen started getting specific about how well he might be doing.

Xanthe cursed the hat. She cursed it to grow to the head and immediately burst into growth of woolly hair – it was a knitted hat – in the ghastly purple and orange from which it was knitted and give the wearer a very bad hair day. She had to chant to free Herr Bergen from its effects. Her twin, who was the more macabre of the two, cursed the necklace to give any wearer the appearance of an inferius.

"Vanitas, vanitam, omnia est vanitatum"* she said sententiously.

"Only too true my dear" said Herr Bergen.

He had several pedestrian ones between these early in the alphabet and their friends at the end, the sort to whom making any of the objects unremoveable was the best curse they could come up with; then Scholastica, who was not perhaps as good as some in terms of performance but who did have an imagination that she knew how to use, cursed the necklace to make the face of the wearer as pretty as her thoughts; which as she said cheerfully would be pretty ugly for a lot of people. Scholastica was a very good chanter as well as studying enchanting and drew on those skills to embed a really rather advanced curse; and Herr Bergen regretted that unless her written work was out of the ordinary that he would be unable to give her an overall 'O' on the strength of one part of the exam.

A couple more youths and the last name in the alphabet, Zollschlange, brought Adolph, another stalwart of the ECC.

Adolph cursed the shoes to refuse to come off with an embedded tickling charm that could not be escaped; because it was the funniest thing he could think of and would be well cool to do to some of the stuffier prigs in the school, as he explained.

It should be mentioned that all the ECC managed a corporeal patronus for bonus marks; and Herr Bergen was glad that the bonus marks should just lift Scholastica into an 'O' if her written was up to scratch.

oOoOo

Harald Trollkettil's Bête Noir was next, the potions exam. The practical was first and consisted of brewing the confusing and befuddlement draught and some appropriate antidote.

The twins declared this absolutely lovely; they brewed the draught and then set to in combining a memory draught with the wit sharpening potion, balancing ingredients to counter the effects of the confusing and befuddlement draught's ingredients – Jobberknoll feather to balance fwooper down, peppermint to balance the inflaming herbs of the confusing and befuddlement draught and so on.

It has to be said that although most people managed the confusing and befuddlement draught they were rather seriously confused and befuddled over the antidote; Vighard brewed the wit sharpening potion in the hopes of getting some points, and in similar vein Aglaia went for the memory potion. The best Scholastica could come up with was peppermint tea to calm the senses with a dash of glumbumble juice to further calm down and a big tot of rum so you did not care anyway.

Harald managed to fail to produce even the basic potion and was almost in tears over the turgid mush in the bottom of his cauldron, which was his second attempt and hardly any better than the first. Had he been a popular boy he would have been given expressions of sympathy over his smoking cauldron when the students left; as it was Xanthippe was moved to ask him why he was trying to make inferii, when alone of the quidditch team, he had fled the quidditch pitch when the real ones attacked.

Harald was unwise enough to try to jinx her and had to be extracted by Xanthe from the farting, floating, bouncing predicament into which that precipitated him.

Xanthe did speak sharply to Xanthippe about knocking him when he was down.

"Like he wouldn't if he could, if anyone in the class is down, regardless of whether they're a particular enemy of his or no?" said Xanthippe.

"We're nearly adult, twin; we don't want to get caught up in childish tit-for-tat that comes close to bullying; we know way too much about the dark arts to risk being tempted down a dark path" said Xanthe. "Why let him jerk your strings? We're far better than him in any subject, pretty, loved by Zlatko and we're Marauders."

Xanthippe nodded.

"You're right; but it's such fun to make him rise" she said "Yes, and I suppose that IS bullying; but he's such an egregious little git, always trying to put others down….. I'll leave him alone. Dignified silence. He isn't worthy of my linguistic gifts anyway."

"Attagirl" said Xanthe.

They went on to the written exam in a virtuous frame of mind that was almost dispelled when Harald tried to hit Xanthippe with a babbling curse on the way in. Xanthippe smiled beatifically at him.

"I forgive you, Harald, because you can't help being an egregious little inadequate" she said.

"It'll have to do I suppose" muttered Xanthe to herself.

The written called on the candidates to cite Golapott's first and second laws, and to list ingredients for an antidote to each of several potions. They had to draw and label a Chinese chomping cabbage; and had to answer questions on the use of certain ingredients in potioneering. The twins considered it fairly straightforward. Harald was so furious over not being able to get near Xanthippe's guard that he could not even recall Golapott's first law and his chomping cabbage was a vague unlabelled sketch. Which was hardly any different to the similar homework he had turned in a few weeks before. Cacilia sympathised with those few who were unable to brew a viable potion; but it was no excuse for sloppy theory work.

oOoOo

Transfigurations followed, the written exam in the morning following the day of the potion exams. There was an essay on vanishing spells and conjuration, which had the twins writing cheerfully about partial vanishment as well as getting rather more technical in nature about conjuring than was required at ZP level. And Xanthe quoted Krait Malfoy Snape and proceeded to wander off above ZH level briefly too in arithmantic explanation of why more energy was required to conjure items. She had also become rather arithmantic over the different forms of vanishing, from _evanesco_ to the more controlled forms that had equations akin to apportation. The second long essay was on switching spells which raised a few groans, though the twins had no difficulty. The third essay was on human transfiguration which may have lost Xanthippe as many marks as it gained her for throwing around phrases like 'assimilative correlation' in suggesting that Harald Trollkettil would do well as a chomping cabbage animagus or rather vegimagus as all he did was vegetate, go green with jealousy, and bite at people so one could not tell the difference between him and a chomping cabbage anyhow.

The standard ZP practical that was in the afternoon required the conjuration of a quill, and marks given on how ornate it was; Vanishing the contents of a bowl; the switching of the contents of two more bowls, some marks given for switching the bowls themselves in their entirety; a cross species switch, and an animate to inanimate transfiguration. The twins managed to switch the contents of the bowls though everyone else stuck to switching the entire bowls. They had a tortoise on which to perform cross species switches and animate to inanimate; because the German for tortoise translated as 'shield-toad' it was normal to switch the tortoise to a toad.* It amused Xanthippe to make her toad resemble Aglaia Hallow. Both twins produced flamboyant quills; Xanthippe a peacock feather and Xanthe an ostrich feather of great size and magnificence. The boxes they made their tortoises into were spectacularly inlaid creations with boxwood stringing in Xanthe's case and brass in Xanthippe's; Xanthe's box was burr walnut with a simple geometric pattern in the centre in box, yew and mahogany. Xanthippe went for rosewood with filigree peonies in mother of pearl and brass details in the stamens.

This was a subject at which Harald was better than most; and he managed a box of wood inlaid with tortoiseshell; many of the students stuck to tortoiseshell boxes and were just glad if their box did not wander off or try to eat lettuce.

oOoOo

That was then the compulsory classes completed; and now the electives might begin. The twins, Alexand, and Aglaia were the ones taking Ancient Runes; it was not a popular class. Scholastica and Yorick might be keen chanters, but declared the subject way too hard, however useful it might be to chanting. As Scholastica put it, it wasn't actually all that useful if you didn't do it right because you didn't understand it.

The exam consisted of a number of texts in a variety of scripts that had to be translated; and only Xanthippe really enjoyed it. The rest knew they had dropped marks on a particularly tricky piece of hieroglyphic translation because, as Xanthe said, all those ruddy birds look so alike and when it's just the difference in the beak it was dead easy to get confused. They all agreed – even Xanthippe who checked to see that she HAD got it right – that the person who set that exam was a confirmed sadist.

oOoOo

Arithmancy was next. The departure of Magdalene Meyer had not been in time for this batch of ZP students when choosing electives; and indeed the next year had probably been sufficiently put off too that it would be a while before a significant number were taking the exam. Which being so, more were taking it than might have been otherwise anticipated because they were an arithmantic year; eight was well above average. The class stars were Xanthe and Yorick; Xanthippe was better than her twin at runes but lagged behind her arithmantically. The big complex questions involved simple calculus, the calculation of the maxima and minima of a number of wizards of specified MHR capacity – Man-hours running, the arbitrary measure of energy in the wizarding world – to open a given area of wizarding space; and in the calculation of a simple apportation. For the simpler questions, numerological calculations on marriage partners were the usual type, as well as a question that expected the completion of two more places in a number of series. This question tested recognition of the Wenlock series, prime numbers and factorial numbers – requiring the calculation of the next two of these – as well as simple relationships such as multiples of numbers or squares of each number, calling for some calculation. It may be said that only Xanthe and Yorick managed the apportation calculation; though the rest managed to struggle through the solving of y/ x to find where the value of it was zero, defining the top and bottom of the curve, the maxima and minima. The class had been drawn from those who loved Arithmancy despite Frau Meyer; and the influence of Katarina Nachtigall had brought them all up to at least E average students.

oOoOo

Enchanting followed, which Xanthe was taking and Xanthippe was not; Scholastica, Adolph, Harald, Vighard and Yorick were taking this as were a few others. Yorick was not especially good at this, though he achieved pass grades through the course, and looked upon it as an extra ZP and a backup to his chanting. Xanthe had a real talent for it and wished that Durmstrang also offered Goblin Metalcrafting.

The written was a fairly standard series of questions on the reasons that certain items took enchantment better than others, and a calculation of the greater amount of energy required to enchant inappropriate objects, and hence the increase in ritual. There was an essay on wand woods, and on the choice of core. The conventional answers called for the discussion of the date of birth of the witch or wizard involved since each lunar month was governed by its own tree; but there were wand woods that fell outside of these, and too sometimes personality and predilection was more important than birth date. And when wands chose their wielder, as Xanthe wrote, sometimes hidden or subliminated traits might be guessed at. And of course every wand wood was modified by the core which might emphasise one trait more than others, even making some of the governance of the wand irrelevant by holding contradictory properties to some of the wood's traits.

The practical involved enchanting a quill and ink separately; and an item of the entrant's choice prepared beforehand for enchanting in front of the examiner.

Xanthe made her ink disappear until activated by a word in Parseltongue; and her quill to work only for her or those of her blood – this would include the blooded though Xanthe was not about to mention this – by having enchanted it whilst writing the powerful binding runes in her own blood. For anyone else it would only write the phrase 'I am a snotty little thief' whatever they tried to write. Her chosen item was a pair of self-washing knickers and bra so she could travel light; practical if not quite what the examiner expected to see presented to him.

oOoOo

Geomancy was so new a subject that it had very few adherents as yet; and if Xanthe had a talent for enchanting, then that was balanced in Xanthippe who had the place sense ability that enabled her to feel ley lines without needing the specific four-point spell to find them. Adolph and Aglaia were the only others taking this.

There were questions on unplottability, a blank map of Germany on which the principle ley lines must be drawn, and a brief essay explaining the uses of ley lines. Short questions on the geomantic symbols and on definitions and terminology completed the paper.

The practical followed the English format of being taken blindfold with a broom to a place from which one had to return to the castle; it was a little late in the day because the examiner had been examining the pupils at the new school earlier. It made no odds to Xanthippe, who returned very quickly indeed. Adolph was almost as fast, with a rapid piece of wand work to find out where he was; Aglaia took a bit longer.

oOoOo

There were just two exams to go after this, History and first, Herbology. There was a fairly large class of herbologists; it was reckoned a relatively soft option except by those who had talked to sixth formers taking it to ZH.

Both twins were taking this, Alexand, Yorick, Harald and Aglaia and sundry others. The practical involved collecting bubotuber pus, fertilising screechsnaps without making them wriggle uncomfortably and picking a flitterbloom from devil's snare. The written had questions on self-fertilising plants, use of fertiliser and self motile plants with various short questions on plant recognition, uses, care and so on. The twins did not feel it was one of their best subjects; but it was handy for potioneering.

oOoOo

The only historians in the class were Harald and Vighard and a colourless and mousy small girl; and it was the given opinion of the twins that the boys had chosen it only because they thought it would be a soft option and had probably had a shock when Lazlo Ijas actually started teaching history not droning on about dates like old Fabeln. The mousey looking girl, whose name Lazlo had managed to find out to be Adasinda, actually left the exam virtually glowing, and declaring that Herr Professor Ijas was WONDERFUL because now she understood enough to make a reasonably good showing in explaining what happened when and why. It dispelled the air she wore about herself that had acted almost like an invisibility cloak to make people forget her very presence, and the twins resolved to get to know her better, as it was a neat trick to have.

oOoOo

And that was the last exam over; the lower sixth and the lower forms still had a couple of weeks lessons while the upper sixth considered their career options according to how well the exams seemed to have gone, and the fifth considered their ZH options under the same feelings, negotiating with the staff regarding the same.

Then the end of the year was upon them; and as Zoltan said, the Music Marauders were now in the middle school and required therefore to be trouble.

"I rather thought we already were" said Beryx.

"More so I suppose" said Corneliu "Have a heart, Zol, we'll be too busy with our maze to do TOO much mischief."

"That's why we need to do mischief to disguise how much we're actually doing with the maze" said Zoltan. "So we need to put our minds to it all over the hols to make sure we have something planned by the time we get back."

"He's fairly clever, my brother" said Sigismund "And we don't want people thinking the maze was more than a mad Herbology venture. And I say, I guess we'd better all take ancient runes as an elective; we so are going to need it to manipulate the maze properly."

"And some of us might actually ask if we can taken the new art OWL that the English have" said Beremud "Because of the topiary horses we're going to grow and actually of the pattern magic we helped re-establish. If we can get a book, one or more of us taking it is a good excuse for us all to learn."

"Well volunteered" said Sigismund.

"I shouldn't mind studying it too actually" said Lindhard "I enjoy drawing; it'd be nice to do something useful with it as well; and to learn to improve. Let's go see the head, Beremud."

oOoOo

Agata was a little taken aback to have two of the youngest marauders wanting to study a rather esoteric subject; but Lindhard managed to sound enthusiastic and almost knowledgeable and Beremud was enthusiastic. Dubiously she agreed to permit them the text book and to write to the Prince Peak teacher to ask if they might have the odd written critique; and read them a homily on not neglecting their other work for frills. Beremud started to open his mouth to say that it wasn't a frill if it helped with the maze, but was well kicked in the ankle by Lindhard; who had no intention of sharing the maze's secrets with a grown up.

Decisions having largely been made, the end of year feast was upon them; and some of the pupils would not be returning next term. Zhanargul and Takeo were off to Prince Peak for a post graduate year, Saula was getting married. Hilde had applied to work in Romania with dragons and others too had their chosen careers to try for.

And the maze was still growing.

* vanity of vanities, all is vanity.

* Schildkröte to Kröte


End file.
